How to Reinstate TRICARE Eligibility

TRICARE is a health care program serving active-duty service members, National Guard and Reserve members, retirees and their families. It is part of the Military Health System operated by the U.S. Department of Defense, and it serves 9.6 million beneficiaries (as of March 2011). Potential and active beneficiaries may lose TRICARE eligibility for a number of reasons, including separation from active duty, failure to enroll in Medicare Part B upon eligibility or divorce from a TRICARE eligible spouse. In some situations, it is possible to reinstate TRICARE eligibility, and other options exist to ensure that alternate coverage is available.

Instructions

• 1

  Contact the Defense Enrollment Eligibility Reporting System (DEERS). Your loss of benefits may be due to inaccurate information in your record. You and your family must be registered with DEERS, and it is essential to keep your record updated with any major life events, including marriage, divorce or enrollment in Medicare. You can correct or update your DEERS record by calling 1-800-538-9552. If you were already enrolled in a TRICARE program option, you should also contact your regional contractor. If you are uncertain which of the three regions you fall under, clarify this with DEERS, which you should call first.

  West:(888)-TRIWEST

  North: (877) TRICARE

  South: [phone]

• 2

  Get Medicare Part B. If you become eligible for Medicare Part B but opt not to take it, you will lose TRICARE benefits. Failure to enroll in Medicare Part B when it first becomes available will also lead you to incur penalties for late enrollment: 10 percent for every 12-month period you were eligible for Part B but did not take it. If you don't sign up when first eligible, you will probably have to wait until the General Enrollment Period (January 1 to March 31 each year) to enroll. Enrolling in Medicare Part B when it becomes available will enable you to avoid both late enrollment penalties and a gap in TRICARE coverage. If it is too late for this, you can reinstate TRICARE coverage by enrolling in Part B, but make sure you contact DEERS. Update your record to reflect the fact that you now have Part B. Remember that the longer you wait to enroll in Part B, the higher a penalty you will pay.

• 3

  Enroll in the Continued Health Care Benefits Program (CHCBP) or the Transitional Assistance Management Program (TAMP). These are programs to provide temporary health benefits for uniformed service members who leave active service and are not eligible for TRICARE. CHCBP provides transitional health coverage for 18 to 36 months after TRICARE eligibility ends and is available to anyone who permanently loses TRICARE elligibility. TAMP eligibility provides 180 days of health care benefits but is more restrictive than CHCBP. Contact DEERS to confirm eligibility.