H.R. 1699

119 HR 1699 IH: TRICARE OBGYN Treatment and Access without Lags in Care Act
 U.S. House of Representatives
 2025-02-27
 text/xml
 EN
 Pursuant to Title 17 Section 105 of the United States Code, this file is not subject to copyright protection and is in the public domain.
 I  119th CONGRESS  1st Session  H. R. 1699  IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES   February 27, 2025   Mr. Horsford  (for himself,  Ms. Houlahan ,  Ms. Salazar ,  Ms. Strickland ,  Ms. Jacobs ,  Ms. Tokuda ,  Mr. Turner of Ohio ,  Mr. Johnson of Georgia ,  Ms. Goodlander , and  Ms. McBride ) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the  Committee on Armed Services    A BILL
To direct the Secretary of Defense to carry out a pilot program under which a TRICARE Prime beneficiary may access obstetrical and gynecological care without a referral, and for other purposes.
1.
Short title
This Act may be cited as the   TRICARE OBGYN Treatment and Access without Lags in Care Act   or the   TOTAL Care Act  .
2.
Pilot program on access to obstetrical and gynecological care under TRICARE Prime program
(a)
Pilot program
Beginning not later than 180 days after the date of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary of Defense shall carry out a pilot program under which—
(1)
the referral requirement in section 1095f(a)(1) of title 10, United States Code, does not apply with respect to obstetrical and gynecological care for covered participants, including the ordering of related obstetrical and gynecological items and services; and
(2)
covered participants may elect to designate an obstetrical or gynecological care provider under the TRICARE program as an additional designated primary care manager under such section.
(b)
Duration
The Secretary shall carry out the pilot program for a period of five years.
(c)
Report
Not later than four years after the date of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary shall submit to the congressional defense committees a report on the pilot program that includes the following:
(1)
An assessment of any increases or decreases to TRICARE Prime enrollment during the period in which the Secretary carries out the pilot program.
(2)
An assessment of any changes in the associated costs of providing obstetrical and gynecological care under TRICARE Prime.
(3)
Any other matters the Secretary determines appropriate.
(d)
Definitions
In this section:
(1)
The term  congressional defense committees  has the meaning given that term in section 101(a)(16) of title 10, United States Code.
(2)
The term  covered participant  means a female beneficiary enrolled in TRICARE Prime who elects to participate in the pilot program.
(3)
The terms  TRICARE Prime  and  TRICARE program  have the meaning given those terms in section 1072 of title 10, United States Code.