washingtonscene

LEGISLATIVE NEWS THAT AFFECTS YOU TRICARE Reform

As Congress considers modifying military health care, MOAA provided input on positives, negatives, and needed changes concerning current programs.

O

n Dec. 3, 2015, then-MOAA President Vice Adm. Norbert R. Ryan Jr., USN (Ret), testified

before the House Armed Services Mili- tary Personnel Subcommittee on what’s working versus not working in military health care delivery and what should be done about it. (To read the full oral statement, see “Health Care in the Cross- hairs,” page 52.) MOAA was invited to provide perspec-

tives on recent TRICARE and military health care reform proposals, including the recommendation from the Military Com- pensation and Retirement Modernization Commission (MCRMC) to replace all forms of TRICARE with a commercial insurance plan much like those of federal civilians. Subcommittee Chair Rep. Joe Heck

(R-Nev.), an Army Reserve physician, said, “This process is not being driven by bud- getary concerns … [but by] how we can best maintain readiness and provide the best health benefit to the military community.” Ryan told the panel the first goal should be to do no harm. Rather than tossing out the whole current system, Congress should focus on preserving what’s work- ing and fixing what isn’t. Ryan debunked the oft-quoted myth that

DoD’s health care costs are “spiraling out of control,” noting DoD projections of future rising costs consistently have been wrong. In fact, he said, “Military health costs have remained flat or have been declining for the past five years.”

Ryan cited several system components

that are working well, including combat casualty care; the overall quality of health care, once it’s delivered; TRICARE For Life; pharmacy programs; and TRICARE Standard, for the most part. Key problem areas he cited include:

 TRICARE Prime’s appointment and specialty-care referral processes;  inconsistent Guard and Reserve TRI- CARE coverage;  limited appointments per provider in military treatment facilities;  the inefficiencies of building DoD health care delivery around three sepa- rate military service programs;  inadequate case-management of the high- est-cost or at-risk health care users; and  pediatric coverage. He told legislators MOAA’s recent sur-

vey* of more than 30,000 beneficiaries found those who use TRICARE For Life are most satisfied. Among currently serv- ing families and working-age retirees, TRICARE Standard users experienced higher satisfaction and significantly lower dissatisfaction than TRICARE Prime users. In closing, Ryan said, “The primary pur- pose of the military health system is readi- ness.” But he said that also includes keeping commitments to families and retirees. “When a service person goes over the horizon, they want to trust that their fam- ily is taken care of,” he said, “and also trust that when they complete a service career,

*read more: Find more about the results of MOAA’s survey on page 36. FEBRUARY 2016 MILITARY OFFICER 31

Take Action Visit http://capwiz.com/ moaa/home to send your legislators a MOAA- suggested message on key issues affecting the military community.