Health Care Reform - 26 Year Old Dependents

[ChiefJohn]

Fortunately, I don't have any "26 year-old" dependents in my household, but some retirees are caring for older dependents.

"Health Care Reform, Tricare, and the 26 Year Old Dependent

Published by Shane Ostrom, CFP® at 2:41 pm under General Financial Planning, Government, Legislation, Military Pay and Benefits

Since the passage of the Health Care Reform bill, the number one question here at MOAA has been, “Will Tricare increase the age of a dependent to 26 to match the new law?”

Answer: Yes, but it won’t be soon. Military health care and Tricare fall under a different set of laws than the Health Care Reform act. Military health care requires changes in the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA). For the dependent age to increase to 26, the NDAA must authorize it. It will. Probably when the NDAA for FY2011 is passed which is usually around October or November of this year.

Then, once the law changes to allow 26 year olds, it has to flow through the bureaucracy. This could take a year…give or take. After a legal change, all the directives, policies, instructions, regulations, publications, computer systems, publication in the Federal Register with the required comment period, and the contracts with the Tricare insurance providers must change.

Oh, and don’t be surprised if when this change occurs, coverage for dependents over the age of 23 requires a premium. Don’t have any info to base this on, just a “worse-case-scenario” hunch."

[DriVer]

Thank you for your insight and opinion Chief Master Sargent!