The one year free upgrade to premium includes an incredibly valuable resource – a library of over 16,000 business, technical, and creative courses on LinkedIn Learning. This means that courses on software development, graphic design, leadership, data science, photography, and more are all available to eligible Veterans. Almost every professional skill has a course on LinkedIn Learning. Veterans can use LinkedIn Learning to take more than 16,000 courses. These are great for finding new career opportunities or developing new business leads.
Specifically for the Veteran community, LinkedIn has created two learning paths.
Transition from Military to Civilian Employment: This learning path will help you navigate your job search, helping you build your professional identity, prepare for interviews, negotiate salary, and even get promoted once you’ve been hired.
Transition from Military to Student Life: Covering everything from ACT/SAT/GRE test prep to essay writing, study skills, time management tips, and how to land an internship, this learning path should set you on a course to success – graduation and beyond.
To make the most of LinkedIn, use these resources:
LinkedIn for Veterans: This course provides a “LinkedIn 101” tutorial for everything from selecting and uploading the right picture to searching and applying for jobs.
Finding Your Purpose After Active Duty: This course is all about the intangibles of transition – understanding your value to civilian employers, dealing with the uncertainty of transition, and wrestling with some of the challenges inherent in this process.
Medicine is poured into a measuring cup at a satellite pharmacy on Nellis Air Force Base, Nevada. (Airman 1st Class Rachel Loftis/Air Force)
Nearly 15,000 independent pharmacies will have a chance to rejoin the Tricare retail pharmacy network, according to officials with Express Scripts.
The move comes in response to the Kroger grocery chain’s Sept. 30 announcement that its 2,200 pharmacies in 35 states would no longer participate in the Tricare provider network, officials said.
Express Scripts will send a notice announcing a December contract solicitation directly to the pharmacies that either declined the recent contract or are affiliated with a wholesaler that declined the contract on their behalf. If the pharmacy accepts the contract, it will be able to rejoin the Tricare network effective Jan. 15.
Until Oct. 24, there were roughly 55,586 retail pharmacies in the Tricare network but, as of that date, 14,963 dropped out. The reduction in pharmacies affects an estimated 400,000 Tricare beneficiaries, according to the National Community Pharmacists Association. Lawmakers and advocates have raised questions about the effect on beneficiaries, especially those in rural areas.
“We constantly evaluate ways to improve access and choice for those we serve, so as a result of Kroger’s recent notice that they will no longer participate in the Tricare pharmacy network, independent pharmacies that declined our previous invitation will be given another chance to consider participating,” said Tom Jenkins, Express Scripts’ vice president of account management for DoD programs, in a statement provided to Military Times.
Beneficiaries who continue to use pharmacies that are no longer in the Tricare retail pharmacy network will pay full price for their medications, then file for reimbursement, which is subject to the deductible as well as a higher out-of-network cost share.
“Even without Kroger’s participation, nearly all Tricare beneficiaries have an in-network pharmacy within a 15-minute drive of their home, but we are always working to provide more choice to our members and look forward to welcoming additional independent pharmacies back into the network,” Jenkins stated.
Kroger announced that the Express Scripts drug pricing model is “unsustainable” for Kroger and customers and that unless a new agreement is reached by Dec. 31, most Express Scripts customers around the country will no longer be able to fill prescriptions at its stores. According to the Tricare website, Kroger was still in the network as of Nov. 14.
Reimbursement rates have been the key issue for the independent pharmacies, too. However, many of the community pharmacies never even received the proposed contract for the 2023 retail network, which Express Scripts sent by fax, according to the National Community Pharmacists Association. These pharmacies therefore had no opportunity to remain in the network. Express Scripts terminated contracts early for the pharmacies participating in the 2022 network — Oct. 24. While Tricare beneficiaries received letters about the change, many pharmacies learned about the change only from their patients.
Information was not immediately available from Express Scripts about whether any rates or terms will change in the new contracts being offered. More than 7,000 independent pharmacies accepted the proposed 2023 rates earlier this year.
“Cigna/Express Scripts offered contract terms to these independent pharmacies that were far below medication acquisition costs, forcing most independent community pharmacies to make the difficult choice to reject the terms, with no opportunity to renegotiate,” wrote B. Douglas Hoey, CEO of the pharmacists association, in a letter to Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin.
Kroger officials echoed the same concerns.
“Since February, Kroger has attempted on dozens of occasions to negotiate in good faith with [Express Scripts Inc.], seeking a more equitable and fair contract that lowers cost, increases access, and delivers greater transparency — but there has been little to no progress to date,” officials said in a statement announcing the termination of their agreement.
“Kroger is doing everything possible to deliver greater value for our customers and navigate this ongoing period of record inflation. We do not believe Kroger customers should have to pay higher costs to increase Express Scripts’ profits,” said Colleen Lindholz, president of Kroger Health, in the announcement.
Earlier, Express Scripts officials told Military Times, “The terms and conditions offered to pharmacies represented our best and final rates, and aligned with the economics necessary to provide the value to the Tricare program and ensure beneficiaries have access to the best possible prices for their prescription drug needs.”
Former YAA Award Nominee Spotlighted at UCONN Veterans Day Provides Opportunity to Recognize UConn’s Military Community
Educating, training, and celebrating the 800 military-affiliated students at UConn
John Durham ’24 CLAS, Sergeant in the Army, and Mariel Beebe, ’24 (NUR) Staff Sergeant in the Air Force saluting The Ultimate Sacrifice Memorial on President’s Field in honor of Veteran’s Day. Sept. 30, 2022. (Sean Flynn/UConn Photo)
When UConn’s military community comes together Friday morning for Veterans Day, they won’t be outwardly marking a “first” of any kind.
In much the same way that tradition and history is ingrained in the culture of the U.S. armed forces, the annual ceremony persisted during the pandemic, albeit with fewer people and a livestream, and every year generally stays true to the same format of speakers who convey words of reverence and honor.
The department was one of only 10 in the country to receive new federal funding this year to establish a Veterans Upward Bound program meant to identify low-income, at-risk, or first-generation potential college students who are veterans and ready them for post-secondary education.
It’s a first for Veterans Affairs, which was created in 2013 and touches around 800 military-affiliated UConn students – not just the department’s first grant but Connecticut’s first Veterans Upward Bound program. The nearest two are in Boston and Rochester, New York.
“Our military community is a small community in a small state,” Veterans Affairs Director Alyssa Kelleher ’04 (CLAS), ’17 MS says. “And at UConn, our students are an even smaller community. Twenty-eight percent of our students have children, and even more than that have a partner, a home, a job, or other responsibilities that come with being an older student, because we skew slightly older than the average student on campus.”
Many UConn veterans serve in the National Guard or Reserves, and many have spent time on active duty, she adds, giving them both the burden and benefit of bringing a different life perspective to campus.
“A lot of our students are making a big transition. They’re coming out of a world they’ve known for four or six years, maybe even longer, and into something completely new where there is a different culture and environment. For them, the focus is on getting an education,” Kelleher says. “Most of them are not here for a social experience; that’s something we try pull out of them. College is a means to a new end in their life.”
Kelleher says that while UConn military students span the spectrum of majors – yes, including puppet arts – the schools of Business, Engineering, and Law tend to have the highest concentrations, because, generally speaking, “they’re often looking for a degree that clearly translates to a job or clearly translates to an occupational goal because they’re used to a goal-oriented culture and mindset.”
Part of getting to that end inevitably means securing funds to support the journey – just one driver that prompted Kelleher to enlist in the National Guard while a college freshman, join UConn’s ROTC program, and commission into the Army. Her tuition was paid.
Helping UConn military students navigate the tangle of scholarship opportunities, GI Bill benefits, and National Guard tuition waivers is the primary mission of Veterans Affairs. Kelleher says the second is managing the students’ personal needs, whether figuring out how to pause classes because of a deployment, return to full-time status upon return, or come together as a community for something like a Veterans Day ceremony.
“To me, the most gratifying part of my job is working with the individual students,” she says. “With 800, it’s a small enough population that you can help individual people if they have issues – whether it’s financial, or adjustment, or just finding them a place to go in between classes. I really appreciate how UConn is part of their journey and how we’re helping to provide for them and realize their goals. Just helping people to see it’s possible to get your education here is gratifying.”
A college experience and military training
By 9:30 a.m. on a recent Thursday, Katharine Riffice ’23 (CLAS) has been up for six hours already and has finished an 8-mile ruck around campus with the other members of UConn’s Army ROTC detachment.
“It’s different than a run,” she says. “It’s different from a walk.”
Carrying 35 pounds of equipment on her back, including a helmet and tactical gear, she traversed campus on an 8-mile loop that brought her up and down Horsebarn Hill several times and on nearby streets and sidewalks at a 15-minute mile pace or better – all while her classmates slept in the wee hours before dawn.
She and her fellow cadets are readying for a 12-mile ruck in mid-November, a feat she’s completed five times since joining UConn’s ROTC program in her freshman year. Today, the psychological sciences major who hopes to join the CIA or FBI one day, serves as commander of the detachment this semester.
And as if the regular rucks around campus weren’t demanding enough, the detachment has applied to the Norwegian embassy to host a Norwegian Foot March, roughly the equivalent of an 18.6-mile ruck, she smiles.
“ROTC is a really good way to join the military,” she says. “You still get the college experience, however, you also get the military training you’re looking for, and the benefits it provides. If you want, you can go active duty after graduation. If you want to go into the National Guard or Reserves you can do that instead.”
103 years ago on Nov. 11, UConn celebrated the armistice that brought World War I to a close, the first observance of what would become Veterans Day. Faculty, staff, and students of Connecticut Agricultural College then posed near Old Main for this photograph taken by faculty member Jerauld Manter, the unofficial college photographer. (University Library Archives & Special Collections)
Over the course of four years, ROTC provides students with the equivalent of basic training and Officer Candidate School, in addition to their undergraduate degree. With college diploma in hand, they commission as second lieutenants into the military.
Lt. Col. Seth Allen oversees UConn Army ROTC, which includes students from 10 other universities, including Central and Eastern Connecticut State universities. Roughly half of the total 150 students come from Storrs.
“What we offer is unlike the other programs at the University, because while you’re going to learn a very unique skillset through the University, we’re going to teach you how to be a leader,” Allen says. “You’re going to become a lot more mature and confident in what you’re capable of doing. You’re going to be a more well-rounded individual who’s ready to tackle the future differently than a lot of your peers.”
What we offer is unlike the other programs at the University, because while you’re going to learn a very unique skillset through the University, we’re going to teach you how to be a leader. — Lt. Col. Seth Allen, UConn Army ROTC
He says he’s particularly taken with the cadets in his care and their desire to serve not just their country but their communities, as many either will go into the Army National Guard or already have joined.
“They’re going to be your neighbors, but on weekends they’re going to be flying aircraft or doing something equally as amazing. On weekdays, they’re going to be working at Amazon or the local fire department,” he says. “That’s the unique thing with the University of Connecticut crew, they go back into the community and just continue to serve out there.”
Jonathan Bartolotta, Army ROTC program coordinator, says he had aeronautical school on the mind when he was 18 years old, but didn’t pursue a military career until years later when he hit a personal crossroads and finally acted on his desire to join the Air Force.
“It was one of the greatest experiences of my life,” he says. “I came out of the Air Force four years later with a college degree and no college debt. It was a great thing to do.”
In addition to Army ROTC, UConn also boasts an Air Force ROTC detachment, which includes students from five universities, most of whom, 44 of 50, come from UConn. Lt. Col. Ryan White says this unit is special.
“UConn Air Force ROTC has been around since the creation of the Air Force,” he says. “We started out as an Army Air Corps ROTC unit back when the Air Force was part of the Army. Then, with the birth of the Air Force in 1947, that was the beginning of the Air Force ROTC. There are 145 other detachments out there, but not all of them trace back this far. There’s heritage and history here at UConn.”
White previously was commander at Vandenberg Space Force Base in Santa Barbara County, California, working with SpaceX and Blue Origin, but describes his work at UConn as a “pinnacle assignment.”
“The mission is completely different, but at the same time this, too, is an incredibly important assignment for me,” he says. “It’s an opportunity to guide and mentor future officers to do what I’ve been doing for the last 20-plus years.”
He echoes Allen when saying ROTC teaches leadership, as opposed to technical prowess.
“The last thing I want is for anybody to think ROTC is just for engineers,” he says. “What we’re looking for is not engineers to do engineering work. We are looking for cadets to be leaders in the Air Force and you are going to find those leadership skills are not inherent to one degree, or one school, or one department.”
Bethany Grabowski, program coordinator for Air Force ROTC, is a former military spouse with family in the Coast Guard, Army, and Marines, and notes the range of professional opportunities in the military.
A framed thank you to veterans at the Oasis in the Student Union. (Sean Flynn/UConn Photo)
“A lot of people don’t realize that any job that exists in the civilian world, exists in the military world,” she says. “You can certainly join and become a pilot. You can join and become a doctor, a nurse, an acquisitions officer, or work in procurement. There are a lot of different paths and different options.”
Supporting and Defending the Constitution
The fact that Riffice is a female in what is a male-dominated profession isn’t lost on her. It’s the reason she pays respect on Veterans Day to those who paved the way.
“The military has changed so much. Acknowledging its past and its transformation is really important,” she says. “Women used to not be allowed in, and now women are able to do combat arms. Women are going to Ranger School. For me, as a female in the military, that’s important. You need to acknowledge where you were in the past to see how far you’ve come in the present day. That’s what Veterans Day does, that’s what you’re celebrating, these people who have made it possible.”
With a family military history that dates to the Civil War, Allen says this Veterans Day he wants his cadets to understand the work they’re doing now is preparing them for one job – bringing home the soldiers who eventually will look to them.
“It’s not just thinking about themselves but thinking about the families that are behind those soldiers. They need to be a good battle buddy and make sure everyone is taken care of, there’s not a more important job than that,” he says.
Along with acknowledgment and staying mission focused, White says Veterans Day should be about giving thanks.
“When you start thinking about veterans across the nation, there’s a broad segment of the population who has stepped forward, raised their right hand, taken an oath to support and defend the Constitution of the United States, and perform the mission they are tasked with,” he says. “Veterans Day is a day for us to be thankful for their service, thankful for them volunteering, and thankful for the work they have done for the United States of America.”
In a Feb. 27, 2013 photo, a sign cautions visitors outside a “pump and treat” facility on the Marine base at Camp Lejeune, N.C. The installation is the site of one of the worst drinking water contaminations in U.S. history. (AP Photo/Allen Breed)
The Department of Veterans Affairs announced last month that it would screen all its patients for possible exposure to environmental hazards during military service, part of an effort to understand the scope of the issue and monitor veterans for related illnesses.
But what exactly does this process look like? VA officials said the 5-minute screening, a series of questions by a veteran’s primary care physician, will help the department “enhance the benefits for veterans already in the system.”
“We are on track to doing that, and we had a very successful pilot. Over 13,000 veterans were screened with a very high ‘hit rate’ of veterans who expressed concern about a possible environmental exposure,” Under Secretary for Health Dr. Shereef Elnahal said Oct. 19 during a press call with reporters.
Beginning Nov. 8, veterans can request an appointment for a screening or will be screened automatically during routine care with their primary VA doctor.
The three-part screening includes the following:
Q. Do you believe you experienced any toxic exposures, such as Open Burn Pits/Airborne Hazards, Gulf War-related exposures, Agent Orange, radiation, contaminated water at Camp Lejeune, or other such exposures while serving in the Armed Forces?”
Yes
No
Don’t Know
Declines Screening
Q. If Yes, do you believe you were exposed to any of the following while serving in the Armed Forces?
Open Burn Pits/Airborne Hazards,
Gulf War-related exposures
Agent Orange
Radiation
Contaminated water at Camp Lejeune
Other exposures
Q. Does the Veteran or caregiver have follow-up questions?
Health/Medical Questions
Benefits/Claims Questions
VA Health Care Enrollment and Eligibility Questions
Registry Questions
No questions at this time
The VA launched a pilot of the screening program last month at 12 medical centers across the U.S., checking out 13,380 veterans. Veterans who were screened had a “high hit rate” of concern over possible toxic exposure, Elnahal said, with roughly 38% answering yes to the first question.
The screenings are a requirement of the Promise to Address Comprehensive Toxics, or PACT, Act, and will be conducted at least every five years. Results of the screenings will be kept in veterans’ health records, according to the VA.
“In addition to helping VA provide additional medical services to veterans enrolled in VA care, the screenings provide an opportunity for the Veterans Health Administration to make referrals to the Veterans Benefits Administration to “see if they can qualify for even more [benefits],” Elnahal said.
The results also will help VA providers better care for vets and steer VA research on combat toxins, according to VA Secretary Denis McDonough.
“It ends up really increasing our own visibility into the exposure that our vets have experienced,” McDonough said during a press conference Oct. 25.
The PACT Act contained a number of provisions to assist the estimated 3.5 million veterans at risk for illness as a result of exposure to burn pits, airborne particulate matter, chemicals and other toxic substances encountered during overseas deployments. The law broadened health care services and disability compensation to an estimated 1 million veterans, and it established a pathway for expedited disability compensation for veterans stricken with certain diseases.
While the department is currently screening only veterans in the VA system, Elnahal encouraged veterans who may be newly eligible for health care under the PACT Act to enroll at the VA.
“If you are aware of veterans who may have been affected by this, please encourage them to apply for benefits under the PACT Act,” Elnahal said.
Veterans who want more information on the PACT Act or to apply for disability benefits should go to the VA’s website or call 1-800-MY-VA-411 (1-800-698-2411).
— Patricia Kime can be reached at . Follow her on Twitter @patriciakime
Dr. Renata Lukezic, a board certified pediatrician assigned to Navy Medical Readiness and Training Unit Everett, Washington, provides a thorough head-to-toe exam of a newborn in 2021. (Douglas H Stutz/Navy)
With Tricare open season approaching, it’s time to start thinking about whether you need to make changes.
Open season starts Nov. 14 and ends Dec. 13.
During that time, you can enroll in a health plan, change health plans or switch between individual and family enrollment. You can also remain in the plan you have, of course.
You aren’t required to make changes, but if you wish to, open season is the only time you can do it unless you have a qualifying life event such as moving, marriage, birth of a child or retirement from active duty. If you do have a qualifying life event, you have a 90-day period to make eligible enrollment changes.
If you’re not already in a plan and don’t enroll during open season, you’ll only be eligible for care at a military hospital or clinic — if space is available. Defense health officials advise that even if you don’t plan to make changes in your Tricare coverage for next year, you should check for any cost changes that could affect you.
As of this writing, Defense Health Agency officials hadn’t released the new Tricare fee schedule for 2023 Tricare Prime and Tricare Select.
By law, DoD is required to raise certain beneficiary out-of-pocket cost shares by an amount based on the annual cost of living adjustment for retirees, which is 8.7% for 2023. Cost increases also reflect changes in the cost of health care services and drugs, and other factors, according to the Defense Health Agency.
There are also differences in some costs based on when the sponsor entered the military, which is required by law. Those who entered before Jan. 1, 2018, are part of Group A, while those who entered on or after Jan. 1, 2018, are part of Group B.
Carmen George, a 59th Medical Operations Squadron nurse practitioner, talks to a patient about a birth control procedure at Wilford Hall Ambulatory Surgical Center, Joint Base San Antonio-Lackland, Texas, on March 8. (Senior Airman Melody Bordeaux/Air Force)
Open season doesn’t apply to active duty members, who have full health coverage, and it doesn’t apply to retirees who are in Tricare for Life. Coverage is automatic if you have Medicare Part A and Part B.
Tricare Prime is a health maintenance organization-style plan in which you get most of your care from a primary care manager, with referrals required for specialty care. There is no deductible. Active duty service members, their family members and transitional survivors don’t pay enrollment fees or out-of-pocket costs for covered services. Retirees, their families and all others pay enrollment fees and out-of-pocket costs for covered services except for preventive care.
Tricare Select is a preferred provider organization-style plan in which you choose your Tricare-authorized provider and don’t have to get referrals for most services. There are deductibles, co-payments and cost-shares.
Those who have premium-based plans — Tricare Young Adult, Tricare Retired Reserve and Tricare Reserve Select — can buy these plans at any time. But those in Tricare Young Adult with the Prime and Select plan options can only change plans during an open enrollment season or qualifying life event.
Note: Make sure your information is current in the Defense Enrollment Eligibility Reporting System. If the information is wrong, you may not be able to use your Tricare benefit, and you could also miss enrollment deadlines.
Tricare open season begins Nov. 14 and ends Dec. 13 this year. (Tricare)
New rates for Tricare premium-based programs
The rates have increased for the Tricare premium-based programs — Tricare Young Adult, Tricare Reserve Select and Tricare Retired Reserve — as determined earlier by the Defense Health Agency. Those increases take effect Jan. 1, 2023.
The new monthly premiums are:
♦ Tricare Young Adult: For TYA Prime, an increase of 11%, to $570 a month. For TYA Select, a 10% increase to $291 a month.
♦ Tricare Retired Reserve: An increase of 9%, to $549 a month, for the member only; and to $1,321 for the member and family.,
♦ Tricare Reserve Select: An increase of 4%, to $48 a month, for member only; and to $240 for member and family.
Pharmacy retail network changes
Tricare beneficiaries have the option of getting their medications through military pharmacies, retail network pharmacies and through the home delivery benefit. Active duty service members pay nothing for their prescription drugs when using these options. For others, the pharmacy costs for all these options will hold steady through Dec. 31, 2023.
The military pharmacy is still the lowest cost option for all military beneficiaries, because there’s no cost for covered generic and brand-name drugs at these pharmacies.
About 15,000 community and independent pharmacies left the Tricare retail pharmacy network on Oct. 24. Among the more than 40,000 pharmacies that remain in the network are CVS and Walgreens, as well as many grocery store pharmacies, wholesale warehouse stores and smaller chains, including some independent neighborhood pharmacies.
Defense Health Agency officials say that nearly 95% of beneficiaries will maintain access to at least two network pharmacies within 15 minutes from their home, and 99.8% will have access within 30 minutes.
You can find an in-network pharmacy using the Express Scripts Find a Pharmacy tool. If your pharmacy has left the network and you need to move your prescription, take your medicine bottles to another participating network pharmacy; that pharmacy will inform you of their process. You can also call your doctor’s office to ask for your prescription to be sent to the new in-network pharmacy, or call your new in-network pharmacy to ask them to transfer your prescription.
Other changes coming with the new year will affect those who rely on specialty medications for chronic, complex conditions such as cancer, rheumatoid arthritis, multiple sclerosis and other diseases. Beginning Jan. 1, Accredo will be the primary Tricare in-network specialty pharmacy, and beneficiaries must get their specialty medications from a pharmacy in the network.
Until this change, prescriptions for these specialty drugs were filled at a variety of locations, including a number of individual retail pharmacies, and through the Express Scripts mail-order pharmacy.
The Accredo service is already available for those who want to switch before Jan. 1.
A child gets a bandage from Senior Airman Kim Williams, 18th Aeromedical Evacuation Squadron aeromedical evacuation technician, after receiving the COVID-19 vaccine at Kadena Air Base, Japan, Jan. 28. (Airman 1st Class Anna Nolte/Air Force)
Other benefits changes
There are a number of benefits changes in the Tricare program each year. Among those in 2022:
♦ Copayments or cost-shares are eliminated for long-acting, reversible contraceptive methods. Those include intrauterine devices, contraceptive shots and subdural contraceptive rods.
Anyone who was charged a copayment for any of these services after July 28 can submit a claim to their regional contractor for reimbursement after Nov. 1.
♦ Copayments and cost-shares are back for telehealth services. A temporary waiver of those costs that went into effect at the beginning of the COVID pandemic has expired, so patients now pay those costs, which are like in-person care costs and depend on the patient’s beneficiary category, health plan and appointment type.
Audio-only telehealth appointments became a permanent Tricare benefit in July 2022.
♦ Qualifying Tricare Prime or Tricare Select beneficiaries can enroll in the Tricare Childbirth and Breastfeeding Support Demonstration, which will run to Dec. 31, 2026. It will expand overseas in 2025. This demonstration project covers certified nonmedical labor doulas, lactation consultants and lactation counselors.
DENTAL
Families of active duty, National Guard and reserve service members— as well as guardsmen and reservists who aren’t on active duty — are eligible for the Tricare Dental Program, which requires separate enrollment.
Most retirees and their family members are eligible for dental and vision coverage under the Federal Employees Dental and Vision Insurance Program, or FEDVIP, which is administered by the Office of Personnel Management and also requires separate enrollment.
The rates will go up an average of 0.21% for dental in 2023.
The open season for FEDVIP this year is Nov. 14 through Dec. 12, which is one day shorter than the Tricare open season.
There are 23 dental plans offered by 12 carriers, seven of which provide nationwide coverage. The remaining five offer regional coverage.
If you’re already enrolled in a FEDVIP dental and/or vision plan and don’t want to make a change, your enrollment will automatically continue.
Vision
Those in the military community must be enrolled in a Tricare health plan to be eligible for FEDVIP vision coverage. Those eligible include active duty family members, retirees and their eligible family members, and Selected Reserve members and their families. There are 10 vision insurance plans available from five national providers.
There’s a bright spot in the vision coverage: Rates will decrease by an average of 0.41%.
Visit www.benefeds.com to enroll in FEDVIP and to get more information.
Federal Times staff reporter Molly Weisner contributed to this report.
In 2022, six more states have joined the ranks of those exempting, or partially exempting, military retirementpay from state income tax liability. The move means that nearly 300,000 more military retirees across the nation are now exempt from state income tax.
This year, legislators in New Mexico, Oklahoma, Rhode Island, South Carolina, Vermont and Virginia passed laws giving retirees in those states tax breaks based on their military service.
Here’s how the legislation shapes up:
New Mexico: Beginning in 2022, up to $10,000 of military retirement is tax free. That amount increases to $20,000 in 2023, and to $30,000 until at least 2026, according to a governor’s press release.
Oklahoma: Military retirement income is fully tax free beginning in 2022, according to a state Senate press release.
Rhode Island: Military retirement income is fully tax free beginning in 2022, according to a governor’s press release.
South Carolina: Military retirement income is fully tax free beginning in 2022, according to a state government press release.
Vermont: Beginning in 2022, up to $10,000 in retirement income is tax free for those with a gross income less than $50,000 for single filers or $65,000 for joint filers, according to a state legislature press release.
Virginia: In 2022, up to $10,000 in retirement pay is tax free for retirees 55 and older. That amount increases by $10,000 each year until 2025, when up to $40,000 is deductible, according to a state assembly press release.
This leaves only California and the District of Columbia fully taxing military retirement income.
Also, retirees, veterans and dependents are often eligible for special state benefits such as property tax breaks, emergency loans, free education, employment training, hiring preference or other free government services. In some cases, you do not need to be a state resident to take advantage of these benefits. Check out our State Benefits section for information that can help you out.
Stay on Top of Your Veteran Benefits
Military benefits are always changing. Keep up with everything from pay to health care by subscribing to Military.com, and get access to up-to-date pay charts and more with all latest benefits delivered straight to your inbox.
Saturday, November 5, 2022, the VMI Commander’s Band will return for a concert in the upstairs hall at the American Legion, 60 County Street, Norwalk. The show is $25 and includes dinner. The menu is pasta, sausage / meatballs, green beans, bread, dessert, and coffee. There will be a cash bar also. Social hour is 5:00 – 6:00 p.m. and the concert is 6:00 – 9:00 p.m. Tickets are available in the downstairs hall after 2:00 p.m. seven days a week.
A non-commissioned officer in charge of pharmacy operations with the 72nd Medical Support Squadron, pulls medications to fill prescriptions. (U.S. Air Force photo by Kelly White)
Thousands of independent and community pharmacies are poised to be dropped from Tricare‘s pharmacy network next month in a move advocates say could leave patients in rural areas with few options to get prescriptions filled.
Effective Oct. 24, 14,963 retail pharmacies will no longer participate in Tricare’s pharmacy network, Defense Health Agency spokesperson Peter Graves confirmed in an emailed statement.
“Despite this change, the Tricare retail network will continue to meet or exceed Tricare’s standard for pharmacy access,” Graves added. “Beneficiaries will continue to have many convenient, local in-network options for filling their medications, including those beneficiaries in rural locations.”
In a separate emailed statement, a spokesperson for Express Scripts, which manages pharmacy benefits for Tricare, pledged the company will “support any impacted beneficiaries in finding an in-network pharmacy to fill their prescriptions.”
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“Tricare beneficiaries will maintain access to nearly 41,000 chain, grocery store and independent pharmacies, as well as home delivery and military pharmacies,” the Express Scripts statement said. “More than 90% of beneficiaries will have a pharmacy within a 15-minute drive time of their home.”
Express Scripts started notifying affected beneficiaries this month, Graves said, adding that those who have specialty medications at one of the departing pharmacies “will receive assistance from Express Scripts in transferring those prescriptions to a network pharmacy.”
One of those affected is Michael Spatz, a retired Air Force colonel with Tricare for Life coverage whose wife has metastatic breast cancer. They have been using a local pharmacy in Alexandria, Virginia, to fill her prescription for Kisqali, a daily pill that stops the growth and spread of the cancer. While Express Scripts filled the prescription through its mail order pharmacy for the first two months, Spatz said the company stopped because of the drug’s cost, which can run thousands of dollars a month.
Their initial reaction when their local pharmacy told them it wouldn’t be in-network anymore was “holy crap, we need to get this medicine,” Spatz said.
CVS Specialty, which his wife’s oncologist suggested they use to replace the local pharmacy, initially gave the couple the “runaround” but has since filled the prescription, Spatz said. As a former Air Force doctor and former executive at Humana Military, he also tapped his connections for help getting answers on Tricare coverage.
While that means there won’t be a lapse in his wife’s medication now, he worries what will happen if there’s an issue in the future without the personal touch of a local pharmacist. He also said he worries about other patients living somewhere with fewer options than Alexandria and with fewer connections than him.
“We have patients who are not going to get their meds because they don’t know how to work the system in a timely fashion at all,” Spatz said.
While some independent pharmacies knew they would be dropped from Tricare next year because they wouldn’t accept the terms of Express Scripts’ contract, many have been blindsided by the Oct. 24 date, said Ronna Hauser, senior vice president of policy and pharmacy affairs at the National Community Pharmacists Association, an advocacy group for independent pharmacies. Many found out by patients bringing them letters from Express Scripts and have struggled to get answers directly from the company, she added.
“It’s just not a smooth transition process,” Hauser said. “It’s very abrupt. There’s no clear answers. It’s causing a lot of frustration for our members, and we know, hearing through our members, it’s causing a lot of frustration for patients.”
— Rebecca Kheel can be reached at ">. Follow her on Twitter @reporterkheel.
This June 21, 2013, photo shows the seal affixed to the front of the Department of Veterans Affairs building in Washington. (AP Photo/Charles Dharapak)
Thousands more veterans will be eligible for Veterans Affairs health care beginning Saturday under a law passed Aug. 10 that expanded benefits for former service members sickened by environmental exposures.
According to VA officials, “tens of thousands” of veterans can enroll in VA health care starting Oct. 1. The largest group to be eligible are post-9/11 veterans who meet certain criteria and hadn’t previously enrolled. They will have a one-year window to sign up, according to the law.
VA Secretary Denis McDonough told reporters during a meeting of the Defense Writers Group in Washington, D.C., on Monday that the VA has hired additional staff to handle claims and increased demand for health care for veterans.
“Saturday, we start an open enrollment period at [the Veterans Health Administration] for health benefits. That’s an important moment for us,” McDonough said.
To be eligible, veterans would need to have served on active duty in a combat theater after the 1991 Persian Gulf War, served against a hostile force after Nov. 11, 1998, or were discharged or released from active duty from Sept. 11, 2001, to Oct. 1, 2013.
Some additional groups of Vietnam veterans and Gulf War vets are also eligible to enroll under certain circumstances.
Vietnam-era veterans will be eligible for care if they served any time in:
Vietnam from Jan. 9, 1962, to May 7, 1975
Thailand at a U.S. or Royal Thai base from Jan. 9, 1962, to June 30, 1976
Laos from Dec. 1, 1965, to Sept. 30, 1969
Guam or American Samoa — or their territorial waters — from Jan. 9, 1962, to July 31, 1980
Johnston Atoll, or a ship that called there, from Jan. 1, 1972, to Sept. 30, 1977
And any veterans who served after the Persian Gulf war and earned an expeditionary medal, a campaign-specific medal or another combat theater award, or a veteran who engaged in combat against a hostile force on or after Nov. 11, 1998, also will be eligible beginning Oct. 1.
“I highly encourage these Veterans to apply now for the health care they’ve earned and deserve,” McDonough said Wednesday in a press release. “This expansion will bring generations of new Veterans into VA health care, and increase the health care benefits of many more, which will result in the one outcome that matters most: better health outcomes for veterans.”
The Sgt. First Class Heath Robinson Honoring our Promise to Address Comprehensive Toxics, or PACT Act, named for an Ohio National Guard soldier who died of lung cancer in 2020 at age 39, broadened health care services and disability compensation to an estimated 1 million veterans thought to be exposed to chemicals, pollution and other exposures during their military service.
The designation allows veterans with the illnesses to receive disability benefits more expeditiously since they aren’t required to prove that their disease is service connected, a process that can be drawn out and that entails extensive documentation and medical assessments.
Under the law, veterans can get screened for toxic exposures as well — meeting with a health provider to determine whether they were exposed or have any health conditions related to the exposure.
The VA began a pilot program for these short screenings, finding that 37.4% of the 13,380 veterans screened at 12 medical centers had exposure concerns.
“These results will help VA make toxic exposure screenings available to all veterans in early November … and make sure that VA provides all toxic-exposed veterans with the care they need and benefits they deserve,” VA officials said in a statement.
According to the VA, the department set an all-time record for disability compensation claims filed online, and more than 70,000 PACT Act-related claims have been filed to date.
The legislation is expected to cost roughly $277 billion through 2031.
— Patricia Kime can be reached at . Follow her on Twitter @patriciakime.
A soldier uses a bulldozer to maneuver refuse into a burn pit at Balad, Iraq, in 2004. (Defense Department photo)
Veterans Affairs physicians will begin screening all department patients for military-related toxic exposures starting in November, the latest step in efforts to understand the scope and severity of injuries caused by burn pit smoke and other battlefield toxins.
VA Under Secretary for Health Dr. Shereef Elnahal told reporters Wednesday that of the more than 13,000 veterans who have gone through the screening so far, about 37% said they have “concerns” about possible toxic exposure issues during their time in the ranks.
“That represents a substantial percentage of veterans in our care that may have been exposed to a toxin that we were not aware of,” Elnahal said. “That could mean more benefits or a higher medical priority categorization for them … This is clearly already bearing fruit.”
The issue of military toxic exposure — particularly poisonous smoke from burn pits — has been a focus of national attention in recent months. In August, Congress finalized and President Joe Biden signed into law the Promise to Address Comprehensive Toxics, or PACT, Act, a sweeping measure to improve the research, care and benefits surrounding those injuries.
Past Department of Defense studies have estimated that nearly 3.5 million troops from the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan may have suffered enough exposure to burn pit smoke to cause health problems.
VA officials said by better screening all department patients, they’ll be able to provide more information to physicians about common injuries and a better picture to researchers about the impact on the veteran population.
The screening tool will be expanded to all VA medical sites and the 9-million-plus veterans enrolled in VA medical care just before Veterans Day. Patients will be required to go through the screening at least once every five years, looking for any signs of lingering respiratory problems or emerging health issues.
The toxic exposure screening will not initially be available to veterans outside the VA health care system, Elnahal said.
The move comes as VA officials are also urging all veterans to look into whether they are eligible for free health care coverage through the department under benefits expansion included in the PACT Act.
Starting on Saturday, tens of thousands of veterans from the Vietnam War, first Gulf War and Post-9/11 conflicts will be eligible for new health care coverage. Veterans will have one year to enroll and could be eligible for lifelong coverage if physicians find evidence of serious service-connected health problems.
More information on enrollment is available at the VA website.
VA officials said they are working to handle the additional workload if the bulk of those newly eligible individuals enroll.
“Our number one strategic challenge is hiring,” said VA Secretary Denis McDonough. “We have concrete efforts we are doing to meet very aggressive hiring goals in a tough labor market.”
Leo covers Congress, Veterans Affairs and the White House for Military Times. He has covered Washington, D.C. since 2004, focusing on military personnel and veterans policies. His work has earned numerous honors, including a 2009 Polk award, a 2010 National Headliner Award, the IAVA Leadership in Journalism award and the VFW News Media award.
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