*** NEWS RELEASE ***

Congress Passes TRICARE Affirmation Act

Springfield, Virginia (4/13/10) – The Senate unanimously passed legislation championed by Senator Jim Webb (D-VA) to fix a flaw in the recently passed health care reform law.  The legislation, called the TRICARE Affirmation Act, passed the Senate without objection last night and follows successful House passage of the bill before the Easter recess.  The bill now heads to the President for signature into law.

The Webb legislation explicitly states that all TRICARE plans are now considered as minimal acceptable coverage under the new health care law. Defining TRICARE under law is important because it exempts its enrollees from the required purchase of additional coverage beyond what they already have.

Unfortunately, the new health care bill, called the Patient Protection and Affordability Care Act, did not clarify that the earned coverage of TRICARE programs for servicemembers and military retirees under age 65 provided minimum acceptable coverage. NAUS continued to work toward “explicit protection” and is pleased to see that the NAUS-endorsed Webb bill clarifies these programs and makes sure that they are explicitly included in law under this definition.

“Senator Webb greatly appreciates the National Association for Uniformed Services’ active engagement and support of the troops and their families on this matter in recent weeks,” NAUS was told in the Senator’s announcement of the successful passage of this TRICARE protection measure.

NAUS President Bill Matz said, “The National Association for Uniformed Services congratulates Senator Webb on his success in the passage of legislation that explicitly states in law that TRICARE meets requirements under the new health care bill. The men and women who serve our country in uniform deserve complete assurance that their earned health care benefits are fully protected and this legislation will do just that.”