Content Manager posted on July 01, 2009 15:47
House Passes FY 2010 NDAA Provisions - HR 2647
The House of Representatives passed the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) for Fiscal Year 2010 which included access to TRICARE Standard health care for retired National Guard and Reserve Members, gray area retirees.
AUSN worked on this legislation last year and this year with Congressman Latta - OH. We have also worked with Senator Ben Nelson - NE in the US Senate. I feel confident that this will pass in the Senate, and we will work vigorously to get it passed in the final Senate bill for FY 2010 NDAA.
Gray area retirees will be able to buy into TRICARE Standard, so it is not free. This provision passed to provide for continuity of TRICARE Standard coverage for certain members of the Retired Reserve.
We thank the following for their leadership and assistance in getting this passed in the House: Congressman Latta - Ohio and members of the Military Coalition and members of the National Military Veterans Alliance. Together we pushed this through. Your AUSN association led the way in getting this provision passed.
Please see the following for the many other provisions that we either lead the effort on, actively supported, actively lobbied for, or supported through calls and letters; http://www.navy-reserve.org/default.aspx?tabid=260... or
http://armedservices.house.gov/pdfs/HASCFY10NDAA061709.pdf...
A few of the provisions passed in the House version of the FY 2010 NDAA:
Authorizes a pay raise of 3.4%
Medical Examination before Separation of Service Members with PTSD or TBI
Travel Benefits for Wounded Service Members
Extended TRICARE Eligibility for Reserve Members; Extended TRICARE eligibility to reserve members so they can now receive full TRICARE coverage 180 days before they go on active duty. Previously, reserve members were only eligible 90 days before they went on active duty.
Extended special pays and bonuses for a wide variety of groups and services, including reenlistment, referrals and critical wartime specialties such as mental health professionals and nurses.
Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) Efforts Report
Currently, research and treatment efforts for PTSD are disjointed between DOD and the Department of Veterans Affairs. The committee therefore requires a joint report from the departments itemizing current PTSD treatments, ongoing research and areas for future exploration, and encourages both departments to collaborate.
NOTE: I specifically mentioned this in my May 20, 2009 testimony before SASC.
Provides benefits to reserve members who met eligibility requirements for the Post-Deployment/Mobilization Respite Absence program but were denied benefits due to an administrative error.