TRICARE Transitional Assistance Management Program
For Guard Soldiers serving on active duty orders for more than 30 consecutive days, TRICARE SelectSM is a valuable benefit that offers full healthcare insurance to Soldiers and their Family members. However, when the time comes for National Guard members to transition from active duty, many are left wondering if they and their Families will be forced to go without healthcare coverage.
Luckily, TRICARE’s Transitional Assistance Management Program (TAMP) provides eligible service members and their Families with 180 days of premium-free transitional health care benefits after regular TRICARE SelectSM benefits have ended.
Eligible service members and Family may be covered by TAMP if the service member is:
- A National Guard or Reserve member separating from a period of more than 30 consecutive days of active duty served in support of a contingency operation or a planned mission
- Involuntarily separated from active duty under honorable conditions including:
- Members who receive a voluntary separation incentive (VSI), or
- Members who receive voluntary separation pay (VSP) and are not entitled to retired or retainer pay upon separation
- Separating from active duty following involuntary retention (stop-loss) in support of a contingency operation
- Separating from active duty following a voluntary agreement to stay on active duty for less than one year in support of a contingency operation
- Receiving a sole-survivorship discharge
- Separating from regular active duty service and agreeing to become a member of the Selected Reserve Component. The service member must become a Selected Reservist the day immediately following release from regular active duty service to qualify.
TAMP’s 180-day period begins upon the conclusion of a Soldier’s active duty orders. With TAMP, Soldiers and Family members are eligible to use one of the following health plan options in addition to military hospitals and clinics:
TRICARE Prime (where locally available; enrollment required)
- TRICARE Select
- US Family Health Plan (if you live in a designated location; enrollment required)
- TRICARE Prime Overseas (enrollment required)
- TRICARE Select Overseas
Since TAMP is a temporary program, Soldiers should start considering long-term health care options well before the program ends.
TAMP eligibility is ultimately determined by a Soldier’s documentation in the Defense Enrollment Eligibility Reporting System (DEERS). Soldiers may view their eligibility online through MilConnect at MilConnect.dmdc.osd.mil/milconnect/. Soldiers should also check with their unit command for information or assistance with TAMP eligibility.
For more information about TAMP, visit Tricare.mil/Plans/SpecialPrograms/TAMP.
BY STAFF WRITER Tatyana White-Jenkins
