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Choices for College Students
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When your child leaves home for college, his or her health care needs may be covered by one of several TRICARE program options.
Eligibility
Your child remains eligible for TRICARE up to age 21. Coverage may be extended to age 23 if both of these requirements are met:
- Your child is a college student enrolled full-time at an accredited institution of higher education; and
- You provide more than 50 percent of his or her financial support.
To extend benefits beyond your child’s 21st birthday*, call the nearest uniformed services identification (ID) card-issuing facility for assistance regarding the documentation needed to update the Defense Enrollment Eligibility Reporting System (DEERS). Note: TRICARE benefits end on your child’s 23rd birthday or upon graduation from college, whichever comes first.
* If enrolled in TRICARE Prime, your child will automatically be disenrolled at age 21 unless DEERS reflects his or her full-time student status. To avoid automatic disenrollment, update your child’s DEERS information prior to his or her 21st birthday. You should also check with Humana Military to ensure there has been no interruption in coverage.
Update DEERS
To maintain your child’s TRICARE eligibility, it’s important to keep his or her DEERS information current while in college. At age 18, children may update their personal information in DEERS. You may update DEERS in one of the following ways: In person at a local ID card-issuing facility; by phone; fax; mail; or online through the DEERS Web site or the Beneficiary Web Enrollment (BWE) Web site. See the For Information and Assistance section for details.
Your Child's Health Care Choices
When selecting the best health care option for your college student, consider these key points:
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Location: If the school is in an area where TRICARE Prime is offered or in a US Family Health Plan (USFHP) location, your child may enroll in either option. If not, the other available options are TRICARE Standard, TRICARE Extra, or TRICARE Reserve Select (TRS)*. If using the TRICARE Prime option, your child’s enrollment may occur as:
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Enrollment within Your Current Region: If the school is located in your current TRICARE region, your child only needs to change his or her primary care manager (PCM) to remain enrolled in TRICARE Prime. You must update your child’s DEERS information, inform Humana Military of the changes, and select your child’s new PCM.
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Split Enrollment: If your child is already enrolled in TRICARE Prime or the USFHP, and the school is in another TRICARE region where these options are available, your family can take advantage of split enrollment by being enrolled in separate locations without increasing any TRICARE Prime enrollment fees (if applicable). Note: If your child enrolls separately in TRICARE Prime after arriving at college and no other family members are enrolled in TRICARE Prime, it is considered a single enrollment. However, your TRICARE Prime family enrollment fee remains the same, regardless of family members’ enrollment.
You must notify both regional contractors of the split enrollment status and obtain instructions for setting up the split enrollment. Student enrollment in TRICARE Prime is automatically renewed after one year unless the renewal offer is declined. Note: The split enrollment option is generally not available overseas to college students due to active duty family member command-sponsorship requirements.
* TRS is a premium-based health care program available to qualified National Guard and Reserve members and their eligible family members. For additional details, visit the TRS Web site as listed in the For Information and Assistance section.
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Getting Care: If enrolled in TRICARE Prime or the USFHP, your child must seek all nonemergency and non-behavioral health care from an assigned PCM, otherwise higher point of service costs may apply. If specialty care is required, TRICARE Prime referral and authorization rules apply. Routine appointments are not covered while traveling. If an emergency occurs, your child should call 911 or go to the nearest emergency room. His or her PCM must be notified within 24 hours to ensure proper payment of the claim.
Under TRICARE Standard, TRICARE Extra, or TRS, your child may see any network or non-network, TRICARE-authorized provider. Applicable cost-shares and deductibles apply. Learn more...
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Cost: TRICARE Prime and the USFHP generally have fewer out-of-pocket costs than the other programs. When using TRICARE Standard, TRICARE Extra, or TRS, your child may need to pay up front for needed services and file a claim with TRICARE for reimbursement.
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Alternative Coverage: Some colleges and universities offer student health plans. These are considered other health insurance (OHI). TRICARE pays second to OHI coverage.
Prescription Drug Coverage
Whichever TRICARE program option is chosen, your child’s pharmacy benefit remains the same. Prescriptions may be filled through a military treatment facility (MTF) pharmacy, the TRICARE Mail Order Pharmacy, a TRICARE retail network pharmacy**, or a non-network pharmacy. Note: Using a non-network pharmacy is your most costly option. To fill a prescription, your child needs a valid ID card and a prescription written by a U.S.-licensed provider. To locate a pharmacy or for additional benefit details, visit TRICARE's prescription portal.
** Prescriptions may be filled at one of more than 54,000 retail locations in the U.S., Guam, Puerto Rico, and the U.S. Virgin Islands.
TRICARE Dental Options
College students may enroll in one of two voluntary dental insurance programs—the TRICARE Dental Program or the TRICARE Retiree Dental Program—depending on their sponsor’s status (active duty, National Guard and Reserve, or retired). See the For Information and Assistance section for program contact information.
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