TRI CARE FOR LIFE

This is a copy paste version that I received from a Navy retiree.

I am one of the guys that supported a lawsuit that Bud Day filed > against the government when they failed to give us free medical as > promised. It affected everyone who joined the military prior to a date > that I think was in 1957. It took us a number of years to finally got up > to the District Court in Washington DC . Prior to the date mentioned above > everyone was told that if you stayed in and retired that you would receive > free medical for life. All the lower courts agreed that we were right, but > that they couldn't rule against the Federal Government. When we met a 3 > man court of the Washington DC Federal Court, and we won! The government > waited until the last possible day and appealed the decision. In the > meantime, Congress saw a problem coming and started working on Tricare for > Life. We were talking about converting to Class Action, which would have > covered all the WW2 retirees which would have allowed reimbursement of up > to $10,000 per individual for damages. (payments that we had paid for > insurance or other items concerning our medical) This would have been a > monster for the government if we won the Governments appeal. Congress went > to full speed ahead and the result was Tricare for Life.>> I anticipate that you will see a new Lawsuit if they try to take our > free medical for life away from us.. The previous decision should still > hold up. If not, there is enough of that would support a new lawsuit to > keep the individual cost low. This time we should sue under Class Action. > That would get their attention due to the previous court ruling.>> We need to spread this additional information along with the > following message.>> Archie Lorentzen Lt Col USAF Ret.>>>>>> FYI: Please pass this along. This came from the Indianapolis Military > Officers Associations MOAA this morning.>> Good Evening, Everyone ->> I just received this from Paul Bossert, with a request that I forward > it to all military retirees that I know. Well this mailing will get to > about 120 or so, and you can certainly send it around, too, as well as > writing to both Sens. Lugar and Bayh, and your Representative - more than > once each. This seemingly constant attempt to 'save money' by penalizing > the military is getting a little old. I went to the CBO site cited in Bob > Clements' letter, and he's right on; it's Option 92.>> Subject: Tricare for Life --- Very Scary!> From the Special Operations Association.>> Gents: TriCare for Life may be in trouble.>> To: All Military Retirees:>> This is a "Heads Up" on a battle we are facing now and down the road > with the new Administration. The Congressional Budget Office (CBO) has > already drafted proposed legislation that would basically reduce our > TRICARE for Life benefits to a system whereby we pay deductibles and > co-pays up to $6,301 the first year for you and your spouse, with future > years being indexed to increase with inflation.>> What can we do? The article below, obtained from an Air Force > Association and written by BG Bob Clements, best describes what we can do. > Please read it and check the links for CBO language and do what Bob says - > Send this email to every Military Retiree you know and write and email > your Congressman often. For those of you that might have voted for > "Change", you should do it more than often!>> TRICARE FOR LIFE'S FUTURE....>> TRICARE For Life was instituted to correct the broken promise that > military retirees would receive free healthcare coverage for life and it > covers the Medicare co-pay. Now a heavy assault has begun on > Veterans'/Retirees' benefits to pay for other programs our President > promised during the campaign. And it is a high priority of his > administration. The one item of most interest to Retired Military is in > Article 189. If approved by Congress the first assault wave would hit in > 2011 and would hit hard. It would initiate cost sharing to require > retirees to pay the first $525 of medical cost and 50% of the next $4,725 > for a first year cost of $2,888 per person. It would be indexed to > increase with inflation. A reason given for this action (for PR effect) is > "overuse" by Retirees.>>> For those of you who are covered by TFL you will want to pay > attention (Below) to what BG Bob Clements has surfaced about the future of > TFL. In any case, on page 189 of the Congressional Budget Office report, > see the note below on how to get to that spot, there is a strong > recommendation to eventually eliminate the program as it is too expensive. > Just another move to slight those of us who dedicated much of our adult > lives to the defense of our country. Strongly recommend that you contact > your elected officials and register your strong opposition to the > elimination of the TFL program.>> Heads-up from BG Bob Clements,USAF Ret(P38 Bob) The following has > been added to the Congressional Budget Office Web Site www.cbo.gov/>> a. Budget, Options, Volume 1: Health Care > (www.cbo.gov/doc.cfm?index=9925)> 1. click on PDF> 2. do a search for TFL>> Now here it is folks and I will guarantee if you sit around on your > behind and do nothing about it as they bring these options forward this > coming year, you will lose one of the best healthcare benefits that the > Medicare eligible retired military have. It is short of the promises made > that we fought so hard for back in the late 90s and early 2000s but it is > still the best healthcare program that anyone in the United States has, > bar none. People who are professionals always look for the channel of > least resistance when it comes to cutting money out of the Federal and DOD > budget. I can tell you this straight on, military retirees are one of > those channels of least resistance noted for sitting around, doing > nothing, and waiting for ole Joe to do it for them. You had better wake > up. Your medical benefits are prime target. If you lose them, you have > nobody to blame but yourself. Let me repeat that .... you have nobody to > blame but yourself.>>> The way to secure your benefits is to write to your members of > Congress and to keep writing and writing and writing. ONCE IS NOT ENOUGH!!>>> Keep repeating the above statement until you are blue in the face. > Now I'm going to make one more statement to all of you younger people out > there who are not yet eligible for TRICARE for Life. HEALTH CARE WILL > EVENTUALLY BECOME THE DOMINATING FACTOR IN YOUR LIFE. Remember that . . . > . it will impact you big time with the utmost in cruelty unless you are > fortunate enough to die from a heart attack or get run over by a truck. > The service organizations will put up a fight, but, they will need your > help and can't do it by themselves. I hope this makes it clear as to what > you can expect if you do nothing.>>> To show you how stupid these professionals can be at times just read > the data on the noted sites closely. You will see that in spite of the > MTFs (Military Treatment Facility) need to get patients back to keep their > doctors busy and the hospitals from going to clinic status, these people > from OMB would employ a means to keep retirees from using MTF facilities > by charging them a fee for services. How dumb can you get?>> Even if you are an Obama fan, and believe that changeth cometh, TFL > option from OMB will not go away. They need the money they spend on you > for other programs for people who produce nothing but votes to keep their > boss in office. If you know of anyone who is Retired Military, please > forward this on to them.>>> Remember- TFL is an "Earned Benefit" that's been granted by a > previous Congress.

Be careful for what you ask, the country voted for and got, President Obama! Little time to rethink what damage those who voted for this man is currently doing to this country. Mfgjr