A bipartisan bill recently proposed by U.S. Sen. Susan Collins (R-ME) would provide premium-free, zero cost-sharing medical insurance coverage for America’s Reserve and National Guard members.
“Ensuring that all of our troops have access to health care is not just the right thing to do, but it enhances military readiness as well,” Sen. Collins said in a Dec. 9 statement. “Our bipartisan bill would ensure that Guard and Reserve members maintain consistent and reliable health care, including the roughly 130,000 who currently lack private health insurance.”
Sen. Collins on Nov. 29 signed on as the lead original cosponsor of the Healthcare for Our Troops Act, S. 5142, with bill sponsor U.S. Sen. Tammy Baldwin (D-WI) as a companion bill to the same-named H.R. 3512, which U.S. Reps. Andy Kim (D-NJ) and Trent Kelly (R-MS) introduced in May 2021.
If enacted, the measure would eliminate certain healthcare charges for members of the Selected Reserve eligible for TRICARE Reserve Select, according to the text of the bill, and would ensure that members of the National Guard, including those preparing to go overseas, would retain their health care even when their duty status changes.
“Maine Guard members have told me that there is a need to extend TRICARE Reserves Select at no cost to the Guard members who do not currently qualify for premium free TRICARE,” said Sen. Collins. “This is of utmost importance to service members whose duty status changes, such as the Maine Guard members who deployed to Poland in May.”
Additionally, the proposal would require a study on eliminating annual physicals during drill and replacing them with forms to be completed by civilian providers to assess medical readiness, giving commanders back valuable training days and saving over $162 million annually in contracted medical assessments, according to a bill summary provided by the lawmakers.
The legislation also would create an incentive for employers to hire Guard and Reserve members by lessening demand for employer-sponsored healthcare plans, the summary says.
“By providing these benefits, our service members will lead healthier lives, improve their readiness for deployment and devote more time to valuable training,” said Sen. Baldwin. “Providing all service members with the health coverage they deserve is not only an investment in our national security, it is also the right thing to do.”