Contact DEERS shortly after the baby's birth to begin building the child's profile in the system. You can accomplish this by visiting your local Uniformed Services Personnel office, or by calling the DEERS Support Office at (800) 538-9552. If one or more family members are currently enrolled in Prime, the child will automatically be covered under Prime for the first 60 days of his/her life. A Prime Enrollment/PCM Change form must be completed within that 60 day period in order to continue Prime coverage with no lapse. Failure to enroll the child within the specified time frame will result in a break of service. Future Prime enrollment will follow the 20th of the month rule. Enrollment applications received before the 20th of the month become effective the first day of the next month. Enrollments received after the 20th of the month become effective the first day of the second month.
To avoid a break in your Prime coverage, you are required to submit a completed Prime Enrollment/PCM Change Form for yourself and family members, if applicable, along with the appropriate quarterly, semi-annual or annual enrollment fee, by the 20th of the month prior to your retirement date (i.e. your retirement date is November 30, 2003, the application must be received by November 20, 2003 for a December 1, 2003 effective date in Prime). In addition to filling out a Prime Enrollment/PCM Change form, you will also need to update your military ID card showing your retired status, as well as any other military ID cards for your family members which might require an update. Prime enrollment fees can be paid monthly, quarterly, semi-annually or annually. Note: Fees can be paid monthly by allotment from your Uniformed Services Retirement Pay or by Electronic Funds Transfer (EFT) from your checking or savings account.
For retirees, their family members and survivors, the individual annual enrollment fee is $230.00 (may be paid in quarterly installments of $57.50 or monthly installments of $19.17 - EFT or Allotment).
For retirees, their family members and survivors, the annual family enrollment fee (for two or more individuals) is $460.00 (may be paid in quarterly installments of $115.00 or monthly installments of $38.34 - EFT or Allotment).
For eligible former spouses, the annual enrollment fee is $230.00 (may be paid in quarterly installment of $57.50 or monthly installments of $19.17 - EFT only).
Active duty and their family members have no enrollment fees.
* Retirees called back to active duty status may have the unused portion of their enrollment fee refunded.
The enrollment fee can be paid in full at the time of your enrollment, or in quarterly installments. If you elect to pay by quarterly installment, you should receive a statement approximately 30 days before your payment is due. However, you are still responsible for knowing when your payment is due and ensuring the payment is made on time. Payments can be made in several ways:
Online
By phone at 1-800-444-5445
At your local TSC
By mail at the following address:
Attn. PNC Bank, P. O. Box 740974, Atlanta, Ga. 30374-0974.
Several options are available to pay your enrollment fee:
Personal check
Traveler's check
Money Order/Cashier's Check
Major Credit Card
Electronic Funds Transfer
Online: If you are currently a PRIME Beneficiary located within the South Region, you have the option of submitting your TRICARE PRIME Quarterly Fee or Annual Payment directly on-line. This "real-time" option begins and ends with each transaction, meaning the fee/payment amount selected during the transaction WILL BE CHARGED to the card provided in real-time. This online method WILL NOT retain your card information as a payment option for use at a later time.
Allotment/EFT: Retirees can request to have prime fees/payments auto deducted directly from their retirement pay or bank account. If interested in this service, refer to the beneficiary forms page, select the Allotment Authorization Letter or Electronic Funds Transfer Authorization Letter/Form and follow the completion instructions located at the top of the form.
Selection and assignment of PCMs is governed by the MTF commander's policy. If you reside within a 30-minute drive of an MTF and space is available for your beneficiary category, you will be required to enroll with an MTF provider. To find out if you are required to enroll with an MTF provider, call (800) 444-5445 or visit the TRICARE Service Center.
TRICARE Prime is a voluntary managed care program. It involves an enrollment fee for retired beneficiaries, and has more rules and restrictions than TRICARE Standard. It is important that all beneficiaries have the opportunity to choose a level of coverage that is appropriate for their own family.
Any relocation for more than 30 days is considered permanent, and you will be required to fill out the appropriate paperwork. If you are moving to another state within the South region, you will need to fill out a Prime Enrollment/PCM Change form to change your address and PCM. The completed form can be submitted at a TSC, faxed to the Central Enrollment and Billing Office (CEBO) or mailed to the address printed on the form. Changes will be effective on the date requested, as long as they are submitted within 30 days of the move. If it has been more than 30 days, the changes will be subject to the 20th/month rule - Enrollment applications received before the 20th of the month become effective the first day of the next month. Enrollments received after the 20th of the month become effective the first day of the second month.
TRICARE Prime enrollment is portable - TRICARE Prime moves with you. You may transfer your Prime enrollment if you are relocating to another TRICARE region. If you’re an active duty service member (ADSM) and you’ll be staying at your new location for at least 30 days, TMA recommends you transfer your enrollment. If you’re an active duty family member (ADFM), you can transfer your enrollment as often as needed. If you’re a retiree, a retiree family member, survivor or eligible former spouse, you may transfer your enrollment twice during an enrollment year - as long as the second transfer is back to the original enrollment region.
If you relocate to an area where Prime isn’t available, you should disenroll (DD Form 2877). Once disenrolled, you’ll be covered by TRICARE Standard. If you’re moving within the same region, you’re required to submit a TRICARE Prime Enrollment/PCM Change form (DD Form 2876) change your address and PCM. DD Forms can also be found at your local TRICARE Service Center (TSC). Or, you can click on the link below to take you straight to printable versions of beneficiary forms.
Unfortunately, no. Currently the TRICARE program is administered by several different contractors located in various areas of the United States. Therefore, the form(s) are region-specific and portability paperwork must be obtained and handled by the region to which you are moving.
Yes, your application would be processed as a new enrollment, and would follow the 20th/month rule - Enrollment applications received before the 20th of the month become effective the first day of the next month. Enrollments received after the 20th of the month become effective the first day of the second month.
You may request to change your PCM at any time - providing your request complies with local MTF guidelines and the new PCM is accepting patients. Once you’ve located the new PCM in the Humana Military Provider Directory, complete a TRICARE Prime Enrollment/PCM Change form and turn it in at your local TSC or mail it to the address shown on the form.
Changing your PCM at an MTF will be effective immediately. If you’re changing a civilian network provider or switching from an MTF provider to a TRICARE network provider, the change will be effective based upon when the form is processed: on or before the 20th of the month, the change will be effective on the first day of the following month; after the 20th of the month, the change will be effective on the first day of the next month. (For example, on or before June 20th, the effective date is July 1st - after June 20th, the change is effective August 1st.
Please do not seek care from the new PCM until you have received confirmation that your request was processed.
TRICARE Prime offers a great deal of flexibility for families living in separate regions. With split enrollment, families who are living apart are able to enroll in Prime in separate regions and pay only one annual family enrollment fee.
Split family enrollments are automatically established when it's determined that two or more enrolled family members reside in separate TRICARE regions. The region the sponsor resides in must receive the entire family enrollment fee. If the sponsor is not enrolled, the entire family enrollment fee must be paid to the region where the spouse is enrolled. If the spouse is not enrolled, the entire family enrollment fee must be paid to the region where the oldest child is enrolled. (Active duty members don’t have to pay the enrollment fees but they can still enroll in separate regions.)
Former spouses are not eligible for split enrollment because they are considered a separate individual enrollment under the TRICARE Prime program.
