Shingles Vaccine OK'd for Certain Beneficiaries
TRICARE now covers the vaccine, Zostavax, for beneficiaries age 60 and older. Zostavax was developed to prevent shingles, a painful viral disease that affects more than one million Americans every year. More than half of those cases happen in people age 60 or older.

Shingles is caused by the same varicella-zoster virus that causes chickenpox in children. It remains in the body for decades, sleeping in nerve cells along the spinal column. A shingles rash usually appears on one side of the face or body and lasts between two and four weeks. It can be accompanied by fever, headache, chills and upset stomach. The Centers for Disease Control recommends a single dose of shingles vaccine for everyone age 60 and older. In a recent study, Zostavax was more than 50 percent effective in reducing the incidence of shingles and more than 60 percent effective in reducing some of its associated symptoms.

DoD and VA Begin Pilot Disability Evaluation System
The Department of Defense (DoD) and Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) recently implemented a pilot test for disability cases originating at the three major military treatment facilities and the VA hospital in the national capital region. This pilot will run for one year. The leadership of DoD and VA will review pilot progress during this period to assist in determining when the program can be expanded to other locations.


The pilot will test a new DoD and VA disability system. The pilot will be a service member-centric initiative designed to eliminate the duplicative and often confusing elements of the two current disability processes of the departments. Key features of the pilot program include one medical examination and a single-sourced disability rating. One goal of the pilot is to enable service members to more effectively transition to veteran status and provide them with their VA benefits and compensation.


The DoD and VA are examining the continuum of care they provide from the point of injury through rehabilitation to community reintegration. The objectives of the pilot are to improve the timeliness, effectiveness, and transparency by integrating DoD and VA processes, eliminating duplication, and improving information provided to service members and their families.


To ensure a seamless transition of our wounded, ill, and injured from the care, benefits, and services of DoD to the VA system, the pilot will also test enhanced case management methods and identify opportunities to improve the flow of information and identification of additional resources to the service member and family. As soon as the service members in the pilot transition from the military, the VA is poised to provide benefits and compensation to these veterans.


The scope of the pilot includes all non-clinical care and administrative activities, such as case management and counseling requirements, associated with disability case processing from the point of service member referral to a military department medical evaluation board to the point of compensation and provision of benefits to veterans by the VA.


The pilot process has been developed over the last several months and is focused on recommendations that could be implemented without legislative change from the reports of the Task Force on Returning Global War on Terrorism Heroes, the Independent Review Group, the President’s Commission on Care for America’s Returning Wounded Warriors (the Dole/Shalala Commission), and the Commission on Veterans’ Disability Benefits.


The pilot is part of a larger effort to improve care and services to our wounded, injured and ill. Some of the other ongoing initiatives include improved information technology and data sharing, facility enhancements, recruitment and retention of care professionals, new methods to care for brain injuries and mental health concerns including post-traumatic stress disorder, and the use of life long care plans to fully support wounded, ill, and injured service members from recovery through rehabilitation to community integration.


An easier way to get your prescriptions
Registering for the TRICARE mail-order pharmacy (TMOP) is now just a phone call or a mouse click away with the launch of the new Member Choice Center (MCC). With this new service, beneficiaries can get enrollment assistance into the program, then contact the physician to obtain new prescriptions and forward them to the TRICARE mail-order pharmacy for processing, making the switch from retail to mail-order virtually effortless for beneficiaries.


Beneficiaries don’t have to download forms or wait t5have forms mailed. They can go to the “My Benefit” portal on www.tricare.mil or to www.express-scripts.com/tricare to complete the registration. They can also9 call the MCC at 1-877-363-14333 to switch from the retail program to TMOP.


When a beneficiary calls the MCC, a patient care advocate from Express Scripts, Inc., TRICARE’s pharmacy benefit provider, explains the program and offers to transfer the current prescriptions to the safe and convenient mail-order option. If the beneficiary agrees, Express Scripts submits a prescription transfer request to the patient’s physician.


The mail-order pharmacy can save beneficiaries as much as 66% on medications for conditions such as high blood pressure, asthma or diabetes. The beneficiary may receive up to a 90-day supply of most medications for the same amount they would pay for a 30-day supply at a retail pharmacy.


The Department of Defense saves money, too; DOD pays 30-40% less for prescriptions filled through he mail-order service compared t retail pharmacies. The department’s saving could be substantial - $24 million a year – with just a 1% shift of prescriptions from retail to mail order. (From Army News Service)


Inhofe Legislation Allows Veterans to Salute the Flag
WASHINGTON, D.C. - U.S. Senator Jim Inhofe (R-Okla.) today praised the passage by unanimous consent of his bill (S.1877) clarifying U.S. law to allow veterans and servicemen not in uniform to salute the flag. Current law (US Code Title 4, Chapter 1) states that veterans and servicemen not in uniform should place their hand over their heart without clarifying whether they can or should salute the flag. "The salute is a form of honor and respect, representing pride in one's military service," Senator Inhofe said. "Veterans and service members continue representing the military services even when not in uniform.


VA and DoD to Test Combined Physical
The Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) and the Defense Department (DoD) signed a memorandum Nov. 6 to test a single physical examination to be used by both agencies. The pilot, due to start this month, will include service members at the Walter Reed Army Medical Center, the National Naval Medical Center in Bethesda, and Malcolm Grow Medical Center at Andrews Air Force Base. The VA will perform medical evaluations based on its system for disability exams, and will include examinations for medical conditions described by military physicians that determine the member’s fitness for duty. The pilot program grew from recommendations of the President's Commission on Care for America's Returning Wounded Warriors, co-chaired by former Sen. Robert Dole and former Health and Human Services Secretary Donna Shalala.


New Changes to Tricare Formulary
On Dec. 19, the Department of Defense will move the following drugs to its third tier, which will cost $22 per prescription: the allergy drug, Veramyst, and the growth hormones Genotropin, Genotropin MiniQuick, Humatrope, Omnitrope and Saizen. On Jan. 16, the allergy drugs, Clarinex and Clarinex-D, and the asthma drug, Zyflo, will move to the third tier. Beneficiaries can have the price of a third-tier drug reduced to $9 if their doctor certifies that a specific medication on that tier is medically necessary. For a list of all Tricare drugs, their formulary status, and other information, visit http://www.tricareformularysearch.org/dod/medicationcenter/default.aspx.


Shingles Vaccine Available to TRICARE Beneficiaries Age 60 and Older
FALLS CHURCH, Va. – Following a Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) recommendation on October 19, 2007, TRICARE now covers Zostavax, the vaccine designed to prevent shingles for beneficiaries 60 and older.


Shingles is a painful viral disease that affects more than one million Americans every year. More than half of those cases happen in people age 60 or older. The CDC recommends a single dose of shingles vaccine for everyone age 60 and older.


In a shingles prevention study done by the Veterans Administration Cooperative Trial, run by Dr. Michael Oxman out of the University of California, San Diego, Zostavax was more than 50 percent effective in reducing the incidence of shingles and more than 60 percent effective in reducing some of its associated symptoms. Even in people who suffer from the disease, most of those who were vaccinated experienced less pain.


“Offering this vaccine to our beneficiaries is further evidence of TRICARE’s commitment to provide first-rate health care to Uniformed Service members and their families,” said Army Major General Elder Granger, Deputy Director, TRICARE Management Activity. “We cover all immunizations recommended by the CDC’s Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices and formally endorsed and adopted by the CDC.”


Beneficiaries who receive the shingles vaccine after October 19, 2007, must have vaccinations administered in a provider’s office. Zostavax is covered under the TRICARE medical benefit and is not reimbursable under the pharmacy benefit. Beneficiaries with coverage or claims questions should contact the TRICARE regional claims processor found on their beneficiary explanation of benefits (EOB) notice.


Shingles is caused by the varicella-zoster virus, the same virus that causes chickenpox in children. It remains in the body for decades, sleeping in nerve cells along the spinal column. A shingles rash usually appears on one side of the face or body and lasts between two and four weeks. It is painful and can be accompanied by fever, headache, chills and upset stomach. For more information on shingles and the vaccine you may visit the CDC Web site, www.cdc.gov/vaccines/pubs/vis/downloads/vis-shingles.pdf.


About TRICARE Management Activity and the Military Health System
TRICARE Management Activity, the Defense Department activity that administers the health care plan for the uniformed services, retirees and their families, serves more than 9.1 million eligible beneficiaries worldwide in the Military Health System (MHS). The mission of the MHS is to enhance Department of Defense and national security by providing health support for the full range of military operations. The MHS provides quality medical care through a network of providers, military treatment facilities, medical clinics, and dental clinics worldwide.


Geographic Scope of Retiree Dental Program Expanded
Currently, the TRICARE Retiree Dental Program is applicable only in the 50 United States (U.S.) and the District of Columbia, Canada, Puerto Rico, Guam, American Samoa, the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, and the U.S. Virgin Islands. However, the TRICARE Management Authority is set to expanding the geographic scope of the program to ensure that all TRICARE-eligible retirees are eligible for the same dental benefits, regardless of their location. Information on the TRDP premiums for the newly covered areas and details about implementation is not yet available. For more about the Tricare Retiree Dental Program, visit http://www.trdp.org/.