TRICARE FEE TO GO UP FOR VETS.

Tom's Journal.http://tomschuckmanjournal.blogspot.com/tschuckman@aol.com

Thugs, robbers, and predators in the wild always look for the easiest prey-- the weaker ones, the disabled older ones, etc. It's no different now days with the Gov't looking to "save" money by trying to 'butcher the sacred cow', the Veterans-- the Ones who gave so much and have the least! Yes, Robert Gates, Sec of Defense, who pushed for Gays to enter the Military is pushing the new TRICARE Fee Increases agenda. Tricare is the entity that insures our precious Veterans and their health care.

It would be smart and advantageous for 'civilians' to learn about TRICARE... because Obama-care -- another Gov't controlled health care insurance entity will soon be knocking at our national door! My many Veteran friends and I KNOW what it's like in TRICARE... long lines, indifferent care givers, many who are only there for the paycheck. Anyone who has followed my humble Blog/ Journal knows how things run at the VA. Sometimes it's almost like a 'crap- shoot'. you never know what you will get when you get there! And there are many decorated, honorable Combat Veterans who refuse to even go to a VA hospital-- for the shabby way they were treated the FIRST time they were jerked around, back in the early 1970's! The true stories never seem to diminish... lol. Sorry, Read 'em and weep.
Hungry lions always go after the weak and infirm in the wild--- and I see many similarities every time I go to the VA hospital. That is one reason I support and stay current with the VVA-- the Vietnam Veterans Association, who look after the Veteran homeless and support Pro-Veteran legislation, etc. Still, in times of harsh economic stress--- the Libby-Left Congress will always try to tap the Vets FIRST! I can't wait for the Rapture! Come, Lord Jesus.

Two other good orgs I try to support are: VOM- Voice of the Martyrs, and Open Doors -- support of persecuted, starving Christians in other lands who continue to hold on to the Faith of true biblical Christianity.

That's just my personal opinion.

Tom Schuckman

Pentagon Pushes for TRICARE Fee Increases

January 07, 2011

Stars and Stripes|by Leo Shane III

WASHINGTON -- End strength cuts and the demise of the Expeditionary Fighting Vehicle program dominated the headlines of the this week's defense budget conversations, but the financial projections also call for another controversial cost-saving measure: increases in TRICARE fees for military retirees.

On Thursday, Defense Secretary Robert Gates called the military's future health care costs "unaffordable" and said the department could save up to $7 billion over the next five years with modest increases in TRICARE fees for working-age retirees. Active-duty troops and their families would not be affected by the plan.

Let your legislator know how you feel about the proposed TRICARE increases.

"The current TRICARE enrollment fee was set in 1995 at $460 a year for the basic family plan and has not been raised since," Gates told reporters. "During this time, insurance premiums paid by the private sector and other government workers have risen dramatically. For example, the fees for a comparable health insurance program for federal workers cost roughly $5,000 per year."

As a result, he said, many of those retirees forgo their employer's health plan to remain with TRICARE, creating a heavy burden on the defense budget.

But lawmakers have rejected that idea multiple times in the past decade, including three straight years during President George W. Bush's tenure in office. And in 2009, veterans groups lashed out at the White House when officials there resurrected the idea.

That year, as part of the fiscal 2010 defense budget, lawmakers passed nonbinding language warning Pentagon officials not to punish military veterans through health care hikes in order to balance the budget.

But Gates insisted that the changes will "better align the department with the rest of the country," and strengthen the military health care system in the long run. The new TRICARE fees are expected to be included in the fiscal 2012 defense budget proposal, to be unveiled next month.

Photo: DoD

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