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Show Hilltop Times May 1, 1997 Thursday, page 2. in the near term. But there are some things we can do to make the most of the remaining funds. In the air base wing, we've talked to our customers about whaf s important to them and well make our customers full partners in finding solutions to the problems posed by shrinking dollars. Challenges, from Air Force medical service Now, let me shift gears to the Air Force medical service and some information presented by Col. Lee Rodgers, the command surgeon. The mission of the AF medical service Active duty members are urged to enroll their families in TRICARE Prime immediately to ensure coverage. is twofold: one, to expand, mobilize, and deploy medical and, two, support for contingency operations world-widto develop and operate a comprehensive and health care system. community-baseOf course, the major issue on everybody's mind is The General Accounting Office reviewed our progress on TRICARE implementation in June of last year and said, "... the Department of Defense's early implementation of TRICARE is progressing in line with expectations. "DOD has enrolled large numbers of beneficiaries in TRICARE Prime. In addition, DOD is addressing implementation problems that early on caused confusion for beneficiaries." Now, let's talk about some of the issues involving TRICARE. The first issue is TRICARE Prime portability, or the gap in coverage which exists after an enrollee disenrolls from TRICARE Prime at one station upon a permanent change in station and before the member enrolls at a new installation. Col. Rodgers believes well have this problem fixed this summer. The issue is that the contractors providing TRICARE coverage are different in different regions of the country and we have to work out the details which will allow the contractors to provide coverage between stations; i.e., to e; cost-effecti- d TRI-CAR- E. Prime, and, finally, all other beneficiaries. This is yet another reason to sign up for TRICARE Prime quickly if that's your choice. While I'm on the subject of TRICARE, I'd like to urge those readers who are active duty members with families, or those readers who are family members of active duty sponsors, to make a decision quickly about TRICARE. I don't have time or space here to outline the pros and cons of all the options. But you need to decide quickly if you wish to enroll family members in TRICARE Prime that is provided through the Hill AFB Hospital and get them signed up. Col. Rodgers also discussed Medicare subvention and the TRICARE Senior Demonstration Project which will be tested this year. For those of you who are not familiar with this topic, here are the basics. Currently, if you are eligible 1 4 IV 7' , H y5) Plain City- - i - I I I 700 No. ! 2 yl Jr S fCN T 1 Pfl T Ogden SALT f' VJX LAKE. X- -J . V- rttp I Morgan L.y.on . tSsxSto sUZmT BUSS CUmBU MOTORS, DC I LUHLla. JKflJm IMWPIiiTtmrtliWn isbdfi -- V???'?!?? 39491 ,t-r-J lllli.. o, J 1 eaazy vuimc w-- - 1 ,J n , I. Centerville W W2 i..u'n.i.'.i.i.n..v.M-- Inf l,,,,, Sg ' ' i P j . rs I HfiSlf'JKfe 627-230- 0 .... 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DOD believes that we can provide health care for our retirees who are eligible for Medicare more cheaply and more effectively than outside providers can and Congress has agreed to let us test the program at Wilford Hall and Keesler beginning this summer. The project will last for three years or until Congress decides to start Medicare subvention. The final issue I'd like to cover deals with a change in focus in the Air Force and how we provide health care. Instead of merely treating illnesses and injuries, our intent is to focus more on prevention. Our preferred future will be on building healthy communities. Three aspects of this "preferred future" are personal health and fitness, occupational health, and community health. Well address personal health and fitness through health and wellness centers, fitness, Putting Prevention Into Practice programs, immunizations, and a host of other programs designed to ensure our individuals are healthier and less likely to get sick. Through industrial hygiene, ergonomics (the design of work places and equipment to minimize injury), hazardous waste management, and other efforts, well work the occupational health side of the equation. And, finally, through ensuring clean air and water, stress management, and substance abuse prevention classes, among other efforts, well pursue our goal of a healthier and fitter force. The AFMC Commanders' Conference, which occurs twice a year, is a valuable opportunity for commanders and senior enlisted advisors from across the command to get together, share information, and receive updates from the command's staff. I got plenty of ideas and things to try at the conference which I'm confident will return dividends here at Hill. make the gap in coverage disappear. The solution will likely be that the "losing" contractor will provide coverage (for up to 30 days) until the enrollee signs up at the new base. The second issue is the priority of access to care through the base hospital. Here's the priority order active duty members, followed by family members of active duty who are enrolled in TRICARE Prime, followed by retirees and their family members and survivors who are enrolled in GfflS n. Main . layton 4 NEW 7 USED CREDIT HOTLINE 645 544-123- 543-227- " "" ' , , |