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Colonoscopy Screening Benefit Expanded (Article 1)
The Department of Defense continues to enhance the TRICARE benefit to provide the most comprehensive and quality care to you and your family. A recent TRICARE policy change will now allow coverage for one routine colonoscopy screening every 10 years for beneficiaries beginning at age 50 for individuals at average risk for colon cancer. Screenings are also covered in the following situations.
 
  • You have hereditary non-polyposis colorectal cancer syndrome. A colonoscopy should be performed every two years beginning at age 25, or five years younger than the earliest age of diagnosis of colorectal cancer, whichever is earlier. Annual screenings should then occur after age 40.
     
  • You have a familial risk of sporadic colorectal cancer.  A colonoscopy should be performed every three to five years beginning 10 years earlier than the youngest affected relative. Familial risk means that you have a first-degree relative (such as, a father, mother or brother) under age 60 with sporadic colorectal cancer or adenomas or multiple first-degree relatives with colorectal cancer or adenomas.

Other routine colonoscopy screenings are not covered by TRICARE.

Note: If you are a TRICARE beneficiary and eligible for Medicare, a routine colonoscopy will most likely be covered by Medicare.

For more information about coverage for routine colonoscopy screenings, call Humana Military at 1 (800) 444-5445.


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The Doctor is in... (Article 2)
David N. Tornberg, MD, MPH
Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for Clinical and Program Policy
A Salute to Veterans

This month, Americans will gather to remember and pay tribute to our veterans. Whether you served our country in a previous war or just retired, TRICARE would like to thank you. We appreciate those who selflessly answered the call to duty and remember those who served.

TRICARE works hard to ensure that TRICARE-eligible veterans and their families get the very best health care when they return home and transition out of military service.

Through our world-class partnership with the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA), we aim to deliver cost-effective, quality services to you and our nation. Our long history of resource sharing with the VA minimizes duplication and underuse of health care resources. By collaborating with the VA, TRICARE strives to meet the following goals:
 
  • Improve your access to quality, effective and efficient health care
  • Help you understand the benefits you earn through each stage of life, focusing on a smooth transition from active duty to veteran status
  • Share your medical data information efficiently and securely to ensure timely and confidential delivery of health care

Our veterans and their families made countless sacrifices for our country, and Veterans Day is a time to thank everyone who served in the military. We are grateful for your dedication to our country. It is an honor for TRICARE to serve you—our men and women who were on the frontlines, fighting for and sustaining our freedom.

For more information on how TRICARE works with the VA to provide you with health care, visit the TRICARE Web site.


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Last Reviewed:  December 4, 2007