washingtonscene Just because a person or political party
\\ COLA News // In the Black
COLA starts the fiscal year in the black for the first time in four years. For the month of Octo- ber 2016, the Consumer Price Index increased 0.3 percent from the FY 2016 baseline. Follow the trends for yourself on MOAA’s COLA Watch webpage (
moaa.org/colawatch).
gets 47, 51, or 55 percent of the vote on a given day does not mean that person or party is going to enjoy majority support for whatever they might propose. Every pro- posal must be vetted in the court of public opinion. And every elected official ignores public opinion at his or her peril. The pendulum of our national direc- tion swings back and forth because the public thinks elected officials have over- reached their limited “mandate.” No elected official is solely responsible for sav- ing or sinking a nation. “Elected” is the key word, of course, and in the U.S. an involved electorate drives the political process. Now that the elections are over, that
same involved electorate has a continu- ing role in determining what happens next. Yes, your voice still matters. Your willingness to express your opinion on an issue-by-issue and day-by-day basis is the counterweight of national conscience that remains essential to keep our elected of- ficials on the right track. Don’t ever be shy about exercising it.
New Services Covered by
M 32 MILITARY OFFICER JANUARY 2017
ment with the American Academy of Pediatrics’ standards for care of well children over age 6. Beneficiaries using TRICARE Standard no longer will pay cost shares for well-child screening and preventive visits.
TRICARE also will cover Cologuard, a new effective and noninvasive colorec- tal cancer screening exam. Given the devastating mortality rate of late-stage colorectal cancer, providing this U.S. Preventive Services Task Force-approved test as an option is important. “Cologuard coverage should encourage
TRICARE Take advantage of new preventive care coverage.
OAA has been pushing for better preventive care within TRICARE for quite some time,
and thankfully some progress recently was made. TRICARE announced it would cover several preventive services that previously were not covered or required cost-share payments from beneficiaries. For children and families, TRICARE’s benefit coverage now will be in align-
more people to get screened for colorectal cancer,” says MOAA Government Rela- tions Director of Health Affairs Capt. Kathy Beasley, USN (Ret). “MOAA is thankful this cost-effective and safe test will be available to beneficiaries.” In the realm of women’s health, new genetic counseling and testing will be covered for women identified by their primary care provider as being at high risk for breast cancer. BRCA1 or BRCA2 gene testing will be covered for women who meet these clinical guidelines. These revisions bring TRICARE into compliance with the most recent national task force and quality committee recom- mendations for preventive care.
Vets in Congress
How will the election results affect MOAA’s efforts on the Hill?
P
resident-elect Donald Trump surprised pundits by winning the White House; Republicans defied ex- pectations of some and managed to hold on to both the House and the Senate. The election results, combined with a number of legislator retirements, mean the military and veterans’ community
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