By Kate

Are you a National Guard or Reserve member who has questions about Tricare medical coverage? I’ve found this great video that explains how Tricare works for mobilized Guard and Reserve members and their families. It also explains Tricare Reserve Select (TRS), a fee-based insurance offered to eligible Guard and Reserve families who are not activated.  (I didn’t even know that existed.)  I’m not going to embed it here but rather link so that it remains full size. I hope that you find it useful!

By Kate

Tricare has temporarily suspended the need for prior authorization and referral to receive the H1N1 vaccine from any Tricare-authorized provider.  What this means is that you can go to a Tricare-authorized provider to get the H1N1 vaccine without seeing your primary care provider first.  With some areas experiencing a scarcity of the vaccine, this will allow you to get the vaccine from the providers who have it without waiting and possibly missing your opportunity.  Pharmacists are not considered Tricare-authorized providers and therefore you will not be able to use this benefit at a pharmacy vaccination clinic.

This page from the CDC provides additional information about Tricare and the H1N1 vaccine — scroll down to find the Tricare section.

This temporary change to policy is only in effect from October 1, 2009 to April 30, 2010.

By Kate

Faithful reader Marv, in Delaware, pointed out this interesting post in a recent MOAA email newsletter:

You could be Bounced from TRICARE Prime.

A new DoD policy aimed at “cleaning up” TRICARE Prime enrollment at military treatment facilities (MTF) could mean some significant changes for many Prime enrollees.

TRICARE has long had established travel access standards to help beneficiaries receive timely health care. The standards require that enrollees shouldn’t be assigned a primary care manager (PCM) at a military hospital or clinic that’s more than a 30-minute drive from the beneficiary’s home address.

As a practical matter, DoD never really enforced that policy. But it will be enforced now.

If they want to continue to be seen in the MTF, current Prime enrollees in the U.S. who live farther away than a 30-minute drive from the MTF will have to request a waiver of the drive-time standard from the MTF commander or the TRICARE Regional Office. Drive times will be determined by a computer program similar to MapQuest. Approved waivers will have to be renewed annually from now on.

Unless they apply for and are granted a waiver before October 1, enrollees who live more than 30 minutes (but less than 40 miles) from the MTF will be assigned a civilian primary care manager closer to their residence. Absent a waiver, those who live more than 40 miles from the MTF will be disenrolled from Prime and revert to TRICARE Standard as of October 1.

TRICARE contractors are mailing letters to all affected beneficiaries, providing detailed instructions on the waiver process.

I did a quick search on Google Maps and discovered that I live 26 minutes from my MTF.  While I do have occasional gripes with my MTF, I really don’t want the hassle and inconvenience of changing my family’s medical situation right now.  This is sure to be an interesting topic — keep your eyes out for more news as this develops.

By Kate

(This is an adaptation of a post at SpouseBUZZ.)

I have reached a point where I need to do something drastic about my exercise and body.  I don’t have the energy I should, my health is not as good as it could be, and I’m tired of feeling lousy when I see pictures of myself.

Being the planning geek that I am, I was making a little chart of my options and their pros and cons.  My ideas included continuing to do what I’m doing now but being more dedicated, joining a gym, joining a gym and getting some sessions with one of their personal trainers, or doing one of those intensive one trainer — one client places.  As you can see, I’ve listed them in order from least cost to highest cost, which unfortunately is exactly the opposite order of how likely they are to be successful.  I was struggling with the balance between cost and results.   On one hand, why should I pay money for something I should be able to do by myself?  On the other hand, doing it myself hasn’t exactly been working, and you can’t really put a price on my health.  I’m sure many of you struggle with this question as well.

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By Kate

The Bureau of Labor Statistics website is a treasure chest of info for geeky types like me.  If you click on the consumers link on the left hand side, you can then click through to find average spending for various groups broken down by income level, family size, and age group.  I find this fascinating from a purely educational point of view.  I don’t think that this report means that I need to run out and spend $376 on tobacco and smoking supplies, but it is interesting to see where our spending is near to or far from the national averages.

Another thing that is useful about reading these BLS charts is that it shows you how the federal government breaks down budget categories.  I’ve often wondered how to budget things:  do I want to put all insurance in one category, or does auto insurance go under transportation and homeowner’s insurance go under housing?  You can do whichever works for you, but it is good to think about these things.

Maybe you will find it interesting, too.

By Kate

I’m not sure if there’s a connection, but I read in my local Giant grocery store advertisement that they are offering free antibiotics now, too.  The list of included medications is available here.  Giant stores are located in Virginia, Maryland, D.C. and Delaware.  If you are not close to a military pharmacy, this might be a way to save on those medications!

According to my research, free antibiotics can now been found at the following chains:

Stop & Shop (Connecticut, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York & Rhode Island)
Publix (Florida, Georgia, South Carolina, Alabama & Tennessee)
United Supermarkets (Texas)
Schnucks (Missouri, Illinois, Indiana, Tennessee, Mississippi & Iowa)
Meijer (Illinois, Indiana, Ohio, Michigan & Kentucky)
Reasor’s Foods (Oklahoma)
Giant (Virginia, DC, Maryland & Delaware

The details, including dates of the offer and included antibiotics, varies by store.  Some stores are also offering free prenatal vitamins.

Have any of you tried this offer, or do you know of any other chains with a similiar offer?  Let us know!

Photo by: joguldi

By Kate

For those families that have non-military income, a valuable benefit can be a Flexible Spending Account.  However, they’re not a very good benefit if you don’t spend the money.  Jim at Blueprint for Financial Prosperity has put together a list of things that you can buy to spend those last few dollars before the deadline tomorrow.  If you’re in danger of losing money in your FSA account, check out his list, and add your suggestions in the comments.

By Kate

Wow!  If you’re in the southeast (Florida, Georgia, South Carolina, Alabama and Tennessee) and you live near a Publix, you can take advantage of their offer to fill prescriptions for selected oral antibiotics for FREE!  Check out this page to learn more.  Included antibiotics include amoxicillin, ampicillin, Cephalexin, Ciprofloxacin (excluding Ciprofloxacin XR), Doxycycline Hyclate (capsules), Erythromycin Stearate and Ethylsuccinate, Penicillin VK, and Sulfamethoxazole/trimethoprim (SMZ-TMP).  You can locate a Public pharmacy at this webpage.  If you aren’t near a military treatment facility, this could be a great benefit — convenient and free.

I’d love to know if any of you have tried this offer, and hear about your experiences!

By Kate

With Thanksgiving coming up next week, I’ve read many articles about being thankful.  As I put together my own list of thankfulness, I noticed that many of the things for which I’m thankful are related to security, and those things are often tied to finances.   Here’s how my list looks:

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By Kate

Do you know about The USAA Educational Foundation?  Created in 1989,  The USAA Educational Foundation is a non-profit organization that provides consumer information publications to military members and the general public.  It is sponsored by USAA, but it does not endorse the products of any particular company.  The Foundation offers online information, downloadable publications, and free hard copy publications on a variety of topics including:

• Choosing, Buying, Selling, Leasing, Insuring and Owning a Vehicle
• Home and Personal Safety
• Insurance
• Financial Planning and Management
• Buying, Selling or Renting a Home
• PCS, Deployment, and Leaving the Military
• Preparing For, Financing, and Succeeding in College
• Elder Care Issues
• Estate Planning and After-Loss Changes

I’ve enjoyed several of The USAA Educational Foundation’s publications and I’ve found them to be helpful and easy to read.  Click on over to their site and take a look around.  I imagine that you’ll find something helpful!