Navigating TRICARE
I had a brand new Army Reservist wife email me earlier this week with some questions about TRICARE. TRICARE can definitely be overwhelming when you’re first getting started, particularly for Guard and Reserve spouses who often aren’t anywhere near a base to go talk to someone.
Laurin and her husband are both in their 40s and have not had insurance for almost a year. Her husband will deploy next year. She’s wondering what her best options with TRICARE are and is feeling pretty overwhelmed and wondering where to start. As I explained to her in my email back, I am not an expert when it comes to TRICARE but I am more than happy to share what we did, and point out some resources/links to check out and follow up on. I thought the same info might help someone else so I’ve pasted my response to Laurin below while leaving out specifics like location. If you have additional thoughts or advice to add, please comment below! We can all help each other!
Hi Laurin!
First, I wanted to say I’m glad you wrote and that we have all been there trying to negotiate the endless forms and information that is TRICARE! I’m not an expert on TRICARE but I can tell you my experience and what we did and hopefully point you in the right direction to get the answers you need.
Make sure you know which TRICARE region you fall under (click here for a map), which is based on where you live. This is important to know because each region is operated a little differently. There are three TRICARE regions – North, South and West – and each has their own website in addition to the main TRICARE website (www.tricare.mil).
North Region
South Region
West Region
Oh, which reminds me – one GREAT resource you should definitely keep on your speed dial and in your online favorites list is Military OneSource. They offer free information and free resources to anyone connected to the military. You can call them for questions about TRICARE as well, and there’s a ton of info on their website that will help you as you get ready for deployment. Their phone is 1.800.342.9647. They just recently updated the site – it’s very, very helpful. Take time to look and you’ll find a lot of great useful info.
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