Should we keep our DS on our medical insurance?

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USNA34

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Feb 10, 2022
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Is it a good idea to keep our DS on our insurance? Will it cause him any issues? Has anyone had experiences that were positive? Negative?
He has been appointed(and accepted) to the Naval Academy.
 
USNA34 said:
Is it a good idea to keep our DS on our insurance? Will it cause him any issues? Has anyone had experiences that were positive? Negative?
He has been appointed(and accepted) to the Naval Academy.
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If he has gotten his Permit to Report link yet or paper copy (COVID interrupted normal routines), read through to find the advice to parents on medical insurance.

This is last year’s PTR - look at top of P. 23. This kind of boilerplate tends not to change year to year.


To summarize, on I-Day, your DS will be 100% covered for medical and dental, with no out-of-pocket cost, by the military TRICARE health plan. His military ID (CAC) becomes his proof of insurance. For urgent or emergency care if not near a military treatment facility, he is covered. He’ll be briefed on how it all works. That said, USNA generally recommends retaining your insurance, especially if there is no extra cost. If he leaves USNA voluntarily or involuntarily (hard to think about, but the incoming class has expected attrition), then there is no drop in medical coverage, especially important if separated from USNA for medical reasons.
 
Is it a financial hardship to keep them on your policy? We had other kids, and our plan just had a price for children not based on how many, so we kept our’s covered.

Our mid got a non military style pair of glasses using our vision plan

The DoD owns them and pays for them as of I Day, but if they don’t stay is it a life event that allows you to put them back on your plan

Examine the costs based on your decision and decide what’s best for you

Technically there is no requirement to keep them on your plan
 
I have a friend with a kid being medically separated. Highly recommend keeping them on if possible for continuum of care, should it be needed. Also no issues with trying to find new insurance, with a now ‘preexisting’ condition. It happens.

As recommended by USNA.
 
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I was on my parents' insurance until I commissioned. Nobody expects to get medically separated, but it happens. Continuity of care is important. Additionally, it allows your DS more options to seek care at home. I had a couple times where I was sick at home and it was easier to just go to my pediatrician (they retained patients through college) than find a military treatment facility/doctor in the TRICARE network. Another good thing I used private medical insurance for was for consults/testing before I needed it. I needed PRK and an asthma waiver to fly. I was able to get a consult beforehand on laser eye surgery and I was able to take a methacholine challenge test before doing it for real. It offered peace of mind and a paper trail if I had issues later on.
 
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And... apparently dental appts for Midns are rarer than unicorns. So DS uses our dental plan when home over Christmas and summer leave for cleanings.
 
Obamacare eliminated any concerns about preexisting conditions and the above stated continuum of care concerns. If you are paying additional for an extra child, you are wasting your premium dollars keeping them on the plan. If they separate from SA, it will be considered a life event that will trigger a special enrollment period to enter back onto your family plan assuming they are under age 26.

That being said, there are agents and HR depts that get paid to advise you on this. Listen to them and not posters on the internet.
 
jebdad said:
Obamacare eliminated any concerns about preexisting conditions and the above stated continuum of care concerns. If you are paying additional for an extra child, you are wasting your premium dollars keeping them on the plan. If they separate from SA, it will be considered a life event that will trigger a special enrollment period to enter back onto your family plan assuming they are under age 26.

That being said, there are agents and HR depts that get paid to advise you on this. Listen to them and not posters on the internet.
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And? listen to the SA. In theory this all sounds great. The reality, if faced with it, may (is) be different.

Every family/situation/finance is different. Like all things, take it all in and make your best decisions.

Congrats on the appointmnet, see ‘ya In Annapolis ⚓️🇺🇸!!
 
jebdad said:
That being said, there are agents and HR depts that get paid to advise you on this. Listen to them and not posters on the internet.
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Follow this...for example my company specifically references in HR policy that dependents attending SA's are considered AD therefore not coverable under company insurance. When annual re-enrollment occurred I did not claim DS even though there was no incremental cost to me. Even though USNA recommends keeping students on plan, it is not possible for mine.

However if separation occurs, it is considered "Life event" and I can add him back immediately.

Make sure you stay compliant with your company/policy. It would be bad to lose benefits or job for a backup insurance policy.
 
LT360 said:
Follow this...for example my company specifically references in HR policy that dependents attending SA's are considered AD therefore not coverable under company insurance. When annual re-enrollment occurred I did not claim DS even though there was no incremental cost to me. Even though USNA recommends keeping students on plan, it is not possible for mine.

However if separation occurs, it is considered "Life event" and I can add him back immediately.

Make sure you stay compliant with your company/policy. It would be bad to lose benefits or job for a backup insurance policy.
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I believe the same occurs w ACA
 
There seems to be some discussion on easy or convenient but keep in mind how insurance works. Once they enter the academy, Tri-Care is your cadet's primary insurance. Since Tri-Care pays 100% for all medical they do not have a need for a secondary policy. If your insurance paid for medical service and later found out that the cadet had primary coverage through Tri-Care, they will want their money back. For full disclosure, I left my child on my policy as it did not have any additional cost but we have never filed a claim for care. The one "gray" area is probably vision benefits. I have used my benefits to help cover the cost of contacts as this is not paid by Tri-Care.
 
Capt MJ said:
If he has gotten his Permit to Report link yet or paper copy (COVID interrupted normal routines), read through to find the advice to parents on medical insurance.

This is last year’s PTR - look at top of P. 23. This kind of boilerplate tends not to change year to year.


To summarize, on I-Day, your DS will be 100% covered for medical and dental, with no out-of-pocket cost, by the military TRICARE health plan. His military ID (CAC) becomes his proof of insurance. For urgent or emergency care if not near a military treatment facility, he is covered. He’ll be briefed on how it all works. That said, USNA generally recommends retaining your insurance, especially if there is no extra cost. If he leaves USNA voluntarily or involuntarily (hard to think about, but the incoming class has expected attrition), then there is no drop in medical coverage, especially important if separated from USNA for medical reasons.
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We did exactly this. Our DD was medically separated during Plebe Summer in 2019 (Class of '23). TRICARE covered her initial heart surgery and will cover all subsequent heart surgeries (every 7-8 years for the rest of her life) and all related medications. Though her med board has still not been completed (ughh!!), the process of getting care has been seamless. For all other medical needs, she sees her regular PCP with coverage on our private insurance.

DS is applying for class of '27, and if admitted, we plan to do the same thing with him; keep him on our insurance through commissioning.
 
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