Bill > HR6635

This bill, titled the TRICARE Protection Act, requires the Secretary of Defense to report to Congress on the future availability of TRICARE Prime, a managed care option within the TRICARE program, across the United States. The report, due within 90 days of enactment, must detail any regions where TRICARE Prime will no longer be offered under new contracts, identify beneficiaries who will lose access to a primary care provider meeting TRICARE access standards (which are designed to prevent excessive wait or travel times for healthcare), and outline a plan to ensure these "affected eligible beneficiaries" (those enrolled in TRICARE Prime who will lose access due to contract changes, excluding active-duty military) retain access to a primary care provider. This plan includes establishing a navigator service to help beneficiaries find providers and potentially allowing enrollment in TRICARE Prime Remote even if they wouldn't normally qualify, to address access issues. The Secretary must then implement this plan for up to two years, or until all affected beneficiaries have access to a qualifying primary care provider. The bill also amends existing law to include monitoring the access of these beneficiaries to primary care providers in future assessments.