The U.S. House of Representatives on July 21 adopted a bipartisan bill sponsored by U.S. Rep. Tom Cole (R-OK) to expand benefits available under the TRICARE Extended Health Care Option (ECHO) program as part of the upcoming fiscal year FY 2021 defense authorization legislation.
The House passed the William M. (Mac) Thornberry National Defense Authorization Act for FY 2021, H.R. 6395, which includes Rep. Cole’s TRICARE ECHO Improvement Act, H.R. 6148.
“I am very proud that the House adopted the TRICARE ECHO Improvement Act as an amendment to the National Defense Authorization Act,” Rep. Cole said. “This amendment rightly enhances the ECHO program by better aligning respite care and coverage of medical equipment and home and vehicle adaptations with current state offerings.”
Rep. Cole introduced the bill in March with cosponsor U.S. Rep. Elaine Luria (D-VA) to outline a more robust ECHO program that improves access for military families with special needs dependents and that would provide equitable coverage of the services widely offered to residents of many states through Medicaid, according to a bill summary provided by the congressman’s office.
If enacted as part of the larger bill, H.R. 6148 would increase hours of covered respite care to provide rest for a patient’s primary caregiver; codify new regulations on respite care eligibility so that families may receive respite care even if they are not accessing other ECHO services; and provide coverage of residence and vehicle adaptations, among other provisions, according to the summary.
“Our men and women in uniform bravely volunteer to keep our nation safe every day, and we should always work to ensure the best care for them and their families,” said Rep. Cole. “Advancing the TRICARE ECHO Improvement Act is a step in the right direction.”