Tricare West Region Beneficiaries Urged to Change Payment Information Before Jan. 1

It's down to the wire for beneficiaries in the Tricare West Region to provide their payment information to ensure they continue their health benefits under the Defense Department's new contract with TriWest Healthcare Alliance.

Tricare patients in the West Region or those who live in six states that will transfer to the region and who pay for their health premiums via credit card or bank transfer must set up their payment information online or have mailed an automatic payment authorization form to TriWest by the end of the year.

According to the Defense Health Agency, 40% of those who pay by bank or credit card had updated their information as of Dec. 26, with a "10% increase just in the last week" that DHA officials said is "trending in the right direction," according to a statement provided to Military.com.

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In October, Defense Health Agency officials announced that TriWest would send letters or emails to beneficiaries announcing the payment update requirement and telling recipients how to do it.

"Adding your payment method now will help make sure you don't lose health coverage in 2025," Tricare Health Plan enrollment analyst Lina Blas said in a news release at the time.

TriWest will not charge for the recurring payment before Jan. 1 but needs the information on file by Tuesday to provide health coverage, according to the Defense Department.

The information was not part of the transfer of information from Health Net Federal Services or Humana Military, which currently manage the contracts for the affected areas.

The Defense Health Agency also said beneficiaries will not need to cancel their recurring payments to Health Net Federal Services after they set up new payments. They will stop after the December payment.

The change does not apply to those who pay for health benefits by military allotment. It also does not apply to those who will remain in the East Region, have Tricare for Life, the U.S. Family Health Plan or an overseas Tricare plan.

Customers also may call TriWest Customer Service at 1-888-874-9378 to update their information.

The Defense Department awarded the new Tricare contract for the West Region to TriWest in December 2022, prompting a series of bid protests and a lawsuit from Health Net, the company that has managed the West Region contract since 2018.

The change affects 4.5 million Tricare beneficiaries, including eight states -- or portions of those states -- that will shift to the West Region from the East. They include Arkansas, with the exception of certain ZIP codes in eight counties; Illinois; Louisiana; Oklahoma; Texas; and Wisconsin, with the exception of certain ZIP codes in Florence County.

Certain ZIP codes in five Indiana counties will switch to the West Region, while the remainder will stay in the East, and portions of five counties in Missouri also will stay in the East.

More information on these "carve-out" areas, which were created because they are located near a military treatment facility or clinic where Tricare Prime is available, can be found on Tricare's website.

Beneficiaries on social media -- largely Facebook -- have reported problems with the online registration system and the phone number. Tricare officials have acknowledged the issues and are responding to complaints through direct messaging.

Patients and providers also have expressed concern over the potential loss of their network providers under Health Net, although TriWest officials said earlier this month that they continue to add new providers to their rolls daily.

On Dec. 24, Children's Hospital Colorado, which serves military families across the state, announced it reached an agreement with TriWest to remain in the Tricare network.

Related: Tricare Patients Fear Losing Preferred Health Care Providers Amid Contract Transition