Congress Urged to Block TRICARE Fee Hikes in Testimony

SPRINGFIELD, Va., March 16, 2011 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- The Legislative Director of the National Association for Uniformed Services^® (NAUS), Mr. Rick Jones, testified before the House Armed Services Military Personnel Subcommittee at a hearing held today to consider the Pentagon plan to increase TRICARE fees for certain retired members of the uniformed services. "The plan for TRICARE increases may indeed seem 'modest,' at first look," Jones told the committee, "but it is clear the plan is 'a nose under the tent,' designed to divide the voice of retirees and start the roll-out for substantial increases in TRICARE fees and copays." 

Jones asked members of the Military Personnel Subcommittee to hold the line against the Pentagon plan to increase TRICARE Prime rates 13 percent next year.  "If cuts are needed to tighten the defense budget," Jones said, "there are other things, big and small, that can be done."  He also pointed out that the real reason for increased costs in military health care is not, repeat, not the military retiree, rather it is the cost of medical care to treat our heroic warriors wounded in battle in the Iraq and Afghanistan wars.  "The costs of military health care always increase during wartime," Jones said. "Stop blaming military retirees."  

The complete NAUS testimony is available online at: http://www.naus.org/what/testimony.html.    

NAUS is a nonprofit, non-partisan association dedicated to protecting the interests of - and benefits earned by - members of the uniformed services for themselves, their families and survivors.  NAUS provides administrative support to the Society of Military Widows.  Visit the Association's web site at www.NAUS.org.

SOURCE National Association for Uniformed Services