Tricare Help: Can ex-husband’s new wife provide son’s coverage? - Getting out, military health issues - Navy Times

Tricare Help: Can ex-husband’s new wife provide son’s coverage?

Q. My son’s father is an Army retiree. He’s trying to get out of paying for my son’s insurance under the child support order. His current wife is on active duty. He said she would be able to cover my son’s Tricare Prime since he is married to her. Is that possible? My son lives with me and my husband.

A. I don’t think what your ex-husband proposes is possible. Tricare eligibility is determined by federal law, however. For official guidance, contact the Defense Enrollment Eligibility Reporting System at 800-538-9552.

DEERS maintains a registry of Defense Department beneficiaries and the benefits to which each person is entitled by law. Discuss your husband’s proposal with that office and get its advice and guidance about what federal law allows in your son’s case.

If your main concern is that the father pay for his son’s health insurance, you should know Tricare Standard is free. If he is enrolled in Tricare Prime, the enrollment fee for one person is $260 per year, but only $520 per year for an entire family, no matter how many members are enrolled. You may need to talk with your lawyer to get your ex-husband to reimburse you for whatever prorated amount is appropriate if your son is enrolled in Tricare Prime.

Q. A while ago, we received notice that we could get Tricare for aging parents who become our dependents or live in our residence. We have Tricare Prime. Can we add on my mother, if we decide to care for her in our home full time?

A. Dependent parents are not among the categories of people who are automatically eligible for Tricare. In some cases, when dependency has been officially established through the military sponsor’s service, a dependent parent may become eligible for some level of medical care at government expense.

For official answers on eligibility, call DEERS at 800-538-9552.

Q. When enrolled in a Medicare HMO, what expenses are covered by Tricare for Life, and how can I get reimbursed for out-of-pocket expenses normally covered by TFL with straight Medicare coverage?

A. To be reimbursed by Tricare for part of your out-of-pocket Medicare Advantage Plan costs, you need to get an itemized statement from that plan and submit it as a Tricare claim.

Call your Tricare Regional Service Center — find the number by clicking here — for more information and detailed instructions.

You may want to ask Tricare which of those services would be covered at no cost, without a need to file a claim, by the free Tricare Standard that is half of your Tricare for Life plan.

Write to Tricare Help, Times News Service, 6883 Commercial Drive, Springfield, VA 22159; or click here to email us. In email, include the word “Tricare” in the subject line and do not attach files.