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DoD Asks for TRICARE Premium Increases
April 29, 2011 • Terry Howell
DoD plans to ask Con*gress to enact a law to per*ma*nently peg the rate of increase for TRICARE Prime pre*mi*ums to the National Health*care Expen*di*ture (NHE) Index. This increase tar*gets mil*i*tary retirees under age.
A DoD told the press that the deci*sion was made to use the NHE Index because it was trans*par*ent, easy to under*stand, and “fair.” But, the issue is that the NHE Index was 3.1 per*cent in 2009; and over the past quarter-century, the aver*age annual increase has been 6.4 per*cent.
This 6.4 per*cent aver*age increase is huge when com*pared to the cost-of-living-adjustment for mil*i*tary retiree pay.
Click here to find out more!
Many veterans’organizations have been push*ing to peg the TRICARE Prime pre*mium increase to the annual COLA, which is tied to the Con*sumer Price Index. Jim*mie L. Fos*ter, national com*man*der of The Amer*i*can Legion said that the “DoD plan is unac*cept*able. Many of our mil*i*tary retirees live on fixed incomes and their COLA just doesn’t keep up with the National Health Expen*di*ture Index.”
Over the last 25 years, the COLA increase has aver*aged 2.8 per*cent; about four per*cent less than the rise in national health expen*di*tures. This will mean more out-of-pocket expenses for mil*i*tary retirees and their fam*i*lies.
Is this a “fair” increase for retirees who have not seen a COLA increase since 2008? Let your elected offi*cials know how you fell about this issue.
Read more: http://militaryadvantage.military.co...#ixzz1LJMywxUd
MilitaryAdvantage.Military.com
DoD Asks for TRICARE Premium Increases
April 29, 2011 • Terry Howell
DoD plans to ask Con*gress to enact a law to per*ma*nently peg the rate of increase for TRICARE Prime pre*mi*ums to the National Health*care Expen*di*ture (NHE) Index. This increase tar*gets mil*i*tary retirees under age.
A DoD told the press that the deci*sion was made to use the NHE Index because it was trans*par*ent, easy to under*stand, and “fair.” But, the issue is that the NHE Index was 3.1 per*cent in 2009; and over the past quarter-century, the aver*age annual increase has been 6.4 per*cent.
This 6.4 per*cent aver*age increase is huge when com*pared to the cost-of-living-adjustment for mil*i*tary retiree pay.
Click here to find out more!
Many veterans’organizations have been push*ing to peg the TRICARE Prime pre*mium increase to the annual COLA, which is tied to the Con*sumer Price Index. Jim*mie L. Fos*ter, national com*man*der of The Amer*i*can Legion said that the “DoD plan is unac*cept*able. Many of our mil*i*tary retirees live on fixed incomes and their COLA just doesn’t keep up with the National Health Expen*di*ture Index.”
Over the last 25 years, the COLA increase has aver*aged 2.8 per*cent; about four per*cent less than the rise in national health expen*di*tures. This will mean more out-of-pocket expenses for mil*i*tary retirees and their fam*i*lies.
Is this a “fair” increase for retirees who have not seen a COLA increase since 2008? Let your elected offi*cials know how you fell about this issue.
Read more: http://militaryadvantage.military.co...#ixzz1LJMywxUd
MilitaryAdvantage.Military.com
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