I never thought much about health care while in the Navy. Never had too, the services offer free care to servicemen and their dependents, which was in part considered an offset for generally lower pay that offered to similarly qualified individuals “on the outside”. It was as much a benefit as it was smart utilization of resources, since the services need to maintain spare capacity and infrastructure in peace time so as to be able to have a trained and capable medical capability during conflict when the need ramps up.
In fact, being blessed through youth with great good health, my most common interaction with military medical was enduring the annual flight physical.
Post-retirement coverage continues to be provided to those who opted into the “Tricare For Life” by paying an annual subscription fee of a few hundred dollars. At least until Medicare kicked in at age 67 65. It didn’t motivate me to continue to retirement – the opportunity to fly fighters did that – but it did seem like a pretty good deal when it was explained to me during transition class. Almost too good of a deal, especially considering the rapid growth in civilian health care costs over my career.
Seems like the Congressional Budget Office agrees, and wants to significantly alter the terms of our previous arrangement.
Ecce: Change you can believe in.
Well, shucks. I guess it really is true: A government strong enough to give you everything is strong enough to take it away.
Thank you for your service, though. That was nice.
I thought tricare coverage already went away after a servicemember or familymember became eligible for medicare…I guess they added Tricare for life to give back what they took away under Clinton. But now it’s going away again. I do have to wonder at the expense of maintaining so many tiers of tricare…prime, plus, standard, life, yadda yadda. Champus seems like a well oiled machine compared with this.
It has been said that “Eternal vigilance is the price of liberty.” However, I always thought it meant looking out for foreign SOBs out to damage us and our country.
It appears that we better spend much more time keeping an eye on the SOBs in Washington, both elected and appointed.
It is bad enough that the “free health care for life” promise was broken. It is worse that they are now looking at stripping away most of the bandages applied via TriCare for Life. All based on “it cost too much.”
For you youngsters, a heads up—- Medicare is not “free” either. As soon as you become eligible (age 65) you MUST enroll in Medicare Part B in order to be eligible for TFL. There is then a quarterly charge for Medicare you must pay (about $350 per quarter). At least that is the current rate, and we can all guess about when and if it will increase and by how much.
Considering the multiple broken promises about veterans health care, the ridiculously underestimated cost projections for every health care scheme implemented to date by the government, and the proven prevarications of the present President, we simply cannot believe a single promise made about “health care reform.”
Contact your Congresscritters again and again. Email, phone, fax and at their meetings (if brave enough to hold any) and tell them to STOP!
A pox on all “enemies foreign and domestic!”
Just an aside, those wreaths at Arlington are placed by the Civil Air Patrol cadets. The same thing happens all across the country in December at Federal Military cemeteries. Teaches the kids a little extra respect for those who protected their freedoms.
And they are provided – free of charge – by the Worcester Wreath Company in Maine. They company has a convoy that travels down the east coast just after Thanksgiving that usually includes an escort of bikers with flags flying high; my mom lives off Route 1 in Belfast, ME and has seen it. Quite amazing.
I’d like to say it’ll never pass, but I’m becoming all too cynical in this Brave New World.
Makes me wonder how long the military retirements are safe. I mean, that’s a HUGE budget item. And didn’t we pay all you old farts when you were working? Why should we pay you for not working?
“Additionally, option 97 recommends doubling the TRICARE Prime premiums and co-pays. Option 94 recommends increasing out of pocket expenses for family members of active duty military members.”
Yay, options. Is that like “with column B you get eggroll”? As a vet in the midwest (who alone bears responsibility for his choice of homestead) with no MTFs nearby, Tricare Prime is hard to use. Most practitioners won’t take new patients (we were lucky) because Tricare Prime, tied to/part of Medicare doesn’t pay them but a pittance.
Now although not the sharpest knife in the block, I know that I should feel fortunate to enjoy the current state, but that eventually they’ll raise premiums or just do away with it altogether. Just a matter of time but I’ll still fight to the end. I know I’m better than no man, but a fair portion of the populace and our current administration’s attempts to make us all equal continues to p!$$ me off. Go stand the watch, earn your benefits before you attempt to take or renegotiate mine. NexGen? God help ‘em. OK, feel better now. Thx.
All the more reason to tell a young man to stay away from the Miliary, as well as Federal government employment.
QM, I don’t doubt die bureaus will do well…
Sue the bastards!
Dear Sir:
Suck it up and pay your fair share, you racist, fear-mongering, un-American bastard.
Love and kisses,
Your Democratic Congress
Unfortunately, it was the ranking member of the Senate Budget Committee that requested the CBO study, and Our Friend Gates, i.e., DoD, who initiated the DoD budget line items increasing TriCare copays. The Dems have a lot to answer for of late, but not this.
daveg/
You left out “You paracitic leaches.” just prior to “suck it up.”
The links in the Florida AmLegion article are inoperative but all one needs to know is here: The Effects of Proposals to Increase Cost Sharing in TRICARE. Note that the preface to this document states:
So… us Ol’ Farts appear to be safe for the coming year. But I wouldn’t bet the farm on anything after that.
Just a small correction, Lex. Medicare kicks in at 65. I know because I’m about six months away from The Event and I’m jes a lil bit concerned, yanno?
Veterans generally don’t vote Democratic, so veterans benefits will be a logical target for cuts. If you understand Chicago-style politics, you understand this. Rahm Emanuel is there for a reason – he’s the enforcer. Obama plays the front role – good guy, good speaker, sounds so reasonable. Behind the scenes is Emanuel – if you don’t play we will hurt you.
If you represent veteran’s interests and you don’t play their game, on health care and the rest of it – you and your constituents will be made to pay. You can bet the Blue Dogs are getting carrot and stick treatment as we speak.
Flatlander/
Is there any difference between present day Dems handing out “earmarked” goodies in dribs and drabs to curry favor with the voters and Al Capone sending Christmas turkeys to widows to show what a good guy he was? As if that makes up for all the rest, right?
[...] Neptunus Lex has Administration threats to gut Navy healthcare for retirees (“Tricare For Life”) in “Promises, Promises“. [...]
My father retired in 1972 with 22 good years. I saw what they did to his retirement pay and benes over the years, and expect no better of my own retirement. Our retiree lobby in DC is fat and ineffective, and I wonder if there is a MacArthur in today’s Army willing to clear the camps were retirees to march on DC again.
My mother remembers when USAF recruiter (or women sent by the recruiters) would visit the NCO wives meetings (speaking of disappearing O Clubs, the whole structure of junior enlisted wives clubs, NCO wives clubs and Officer’s wives clubs have all disappeared with the tides, an entire network of self-help and self-reliance to be replaced by a bureaucratic entitity of one stripe or another) and hand out pamphlets promising health care for life as part of the enticement to wives to get their husbands to re-enlist.