By Jose Luis Magana, AP
Health care costs are "eating the Department of Defense alive," says Defense Secretary Robert Gates.
The emphasis is on "little." The annual amount the Pentagon charges retirees for the military's basic Tricare health insurance plan — $460 for family coverage — was set back in 1995. It hasn't changed in 16 years. Can anyone else in the USA say that about his health premiums?
Gates' proposal requires retirees to pay an extra $5 a month for family coverage, or $2.50 a month for individuals. Even then, health coverage for military retirees would still be extraordinarily cheap: $520 a year for families and $260 a year for individuals.
Compare those figures with premiums in the civilian world: The average worker with employer-provided insurance pays about $4,000 a year for a family plan.
Health insurance for military retirees was always meant to be inexpensive, as part of the compensation for servicemembers' sacrifice: They relocate frequently and must serve at least 20 years to qualify for retiree benefits, often away from their families and in harm's way. But the disparity is simply too big to defend at a time of strained budgets. The House passed a major defense bill last week that included the fee increases.
Even if those increases pass the Senate, too, they don't go far enough. Monthly increases the price of a Starbucks latte will barely dent the Pentagon's spending on health care, which has nearly tripled in the past decade, to more than $50 billion this year. That's about one-tenth of the Pentagon's basic budget.
There is still plenty of room to pare back health care costs while treating servicemembers fairly. Many retire in their 40s after 20 years and join private companies that offer employer-provided health insurance. But some 60% keep Tricare because it's so much cheaper, and who can blame them? One useful proposal is to change the rules to encourage retirees who can get private insurance to take it. Other ideas include restoring premiums to inflation-adjusted 1995 levels and allowing future Tricare fees to rise along with health care costs.
Contrary to myths spread by opponents of Gates' proposals, active-duty servicemembers and their dependents will still get health care for free. That's as it should be. Wounded warriors, low-income veterans, those with service-related disabilities, former POWs and others will still qualify for free care from the Department of Veterans Affairs.
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I suspect this is just the beginning and who knows where we'll end up with our healthcare when this group is done. I'm not feeling very confident for the future.....jd
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