MOAA 2007 Legislative Agenda
Posted by Warren Enos on 27 Feb 2007 | Tagged as: MOAA
THREE ISSUE FOCUS IN COMING YEAR
Late in 2006, and after extensive studies, MOAA settled on three important issues it will pursue with the Congress.
First, the military pay gap. Uniformed services’ members basic pay must be reasonably comparable with private sector pay scales and adjusted annually as necessary to restore/maintain comparability with private sector pay increases.
Second, ending the SBP-DIC offset and the so-called “Greatest Generation” tax. Two military Survivor Benefit Plan (SBP) inequities need to be corrected: (1) the dollar-for-dollar deduction of VA benefits for service-connected deaths from survivors’ SBP annuities, and (2) the 2008 effective date of 30-year paid up SBP coverage, which imposes undue financial penalties on the earliest SBP enrollees.
Third, health care cost-shifting to military beneficiaries. The FY08 Defense budget cut needed TRICARE funding by $1.8 billion, assuming health fees for military retirees under age 65 will be tripled, including (1) raising $230 single/$460 family TRICARE enrollment fee as high as $700/$1400, (2) raising annual $150 single/$300 family TRICARE Standard fees as high as $560/$1,120, (3) retail pharmacy copays would be raised 67% for all beneficiaries.
An effort to influence legislators will get underway in a big way during late April 2007 when special MOAA teams “Storm the Hill” in Washington, D.C. These teams will be prepared to meet with key legislators, present the issues, provide background information and options, share the MOAA position, and make recommendations for corrective action.
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Legislative Gains and Goals
2006 Victories
–Blocked TRICARE fee increases and pharmacy co-pay increases for FY 2007 and prevented fee increases for VA health care
–Reversed 5.1% cut in 2007 Medicare and TRICARE payment rates to doctors
–Raised minimum age-62 SBP annuity to 45% of covered retired pay (as of 1 April 2006)
–Required study of removing Social Security numbers from military ID cards
–Protected commissary funding
–Established permanent military ID cards for retirees’ permanently disabled dependents
2007 Priorities
–Preserve full-inflation cost-of-living adjustments to military and veterans’ annuities
–Protect against healthcare benefits cuts
–Accelerate the implementation of 30-year paid-up SBP coverage (currently scheduled for 10/1/08)
–Eliminate the VA survivor benefit / Dependency and Indemnity Compensation (DIC) deduction from SBP annuities
–Expand permanent ID card eligibility for older dependents and survivors
–Authorize full concurrent receipt of military retired pay and VA disability compensation, and expand benefit to medical retirees with less than 20 years’ service
LtCol Bill Gavitt, USAF (Ret)
Member, Board of Directors
Military Officers Association of America