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Continued Health Care Benefit Plan

The Continued Health Care Benefit Program (CHCBP) is a premium-based plan that:

Provides temporary health coverage for 18-36 months when beneficiaries lose eligibility for Tricare, acting as a bridge between military health benefits and a civilian health plan.

Provides the same coverage as Tricare Select, including prescriptions.

Qualifies as minimum essential coverage under the Affordable Care Act, but it is temporary. You should consider your options for when CHCBP ends.

If you qualify, you can purchase CHCBP within 60 days of the loss of Tricare eligibility.

CHCBP coverage must be purchased in 90-day increments, and premiums are billed quarterly.

The premium rates for 2024 are $1,813 per quarter for individuals and $4,539 per quarter for families.

Who is Eligible for Continued Health Care Benefits?

You may qualify to purchase the CHCBP in the following scenarios. In all cases, the service member's separation must be under "other than adverse" conditions. You must have an "honorable" or "general" discharge to qualify.

If you were using one of the following plans, it must have been purchased and in place at least one day before you lost eligibility for you to qualify for CHCBP:

Former Category Scenario Length of Coverage Active Duty Service Member Released from active duty Up to 18 months Full-time National Guard Member Separated from full-time status Up to 18 months Member covered by the Transitional Assistance Management Program (TAMP) Loss of TAMP coverage Up to 18 months Selected Reserve member covered by TRS Loss of TRS coverage Up to 18 months Retired Reserve member covered by TRR Loss of TRR coverage (before age 60) Up to 18 months Dependent spouse or child Loss of TRICARE coverage Up to 36 months Unremarried former spouse Loss of TRICARE coverage Up to 36 months*

*Unremarried former spouses may qualify for additional coverage. Please check with Humana Military for details.

CHCBP Contractor

The CHCBP contractor is Humana Military, a division of Humana Government Business. Humana Military provides services for enrollment, authorization, claims processing and customer service. For more information about CHCBP or to see if you qualify:

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Transitional Health Care Programs (TAMP)

Several health care programs are available to help departing military service members keep insurance while transitioning into the civilian workforce. These programs are designed to meet specific needs based on duty status and transition circumstances. Some of these programs are long term, while others are temporary in nature and only provide coverage for up to three years.

In addition, these coverage plans often require you to pay a premium, cost shares, deductibles and co-pays.

Tricare's Transition Assistance Management Program

The Transitional Assistance Management Program (TAMP) offers transitional Tricare coverage to certain separating active-duty members and their eligible family members. Care is available for only 180 days.

The four categories for TAMP eligibility are:

Members involuntarily separated from active duty and their eligible family members

National Guard and reserve members separated from active duty after being called up for an active-duty period of more than 30 days

Members separated from active duty after being involuntarily retained in support of a contingency operation

Members separated from active duty following a voluntary agreement to stay on active duty for less than one year in support of a contingency mission

Check out Tricare's TAMP web page to learn more about enrollment in this program.

Continued Health Care Benefit Program (CHCBP)

After the TAMP eligibility expires, you or a family member may apply for temporary, transitional medical coverage under the Continued Health Care Benefit Program. CHCBP is a premium-based health care program providing medical coverage to a select group of former military beneficiaries. CHCBP is similar to, but not part of, Tricare.  The CHCBP program extends health care coverage to the following individuals when they lose military benefits:

The service member (who can also enroll his or her family members)

Certain former spouses who have not remarried

Certain children who lose military coverage

Humana Military Healthcare Services runs the program for DOD. Visit the Humana website for CHCBP applications and enrollment information.

CHCBP Basics

CHCBP is a health care program intended to provide you with continuous health care coverage on a temporary basis following your loss of military benefits. It acts as a "bridge" between your military health benefits and your new job's medical benefits, so you and your family will receive continuous medical coverage.

Enrollment and Coverage

Eligible beneficiaries must enroll in CHCBP within 60 days following the loss of entitlement to the Military Health System. To enroll, you will be required to submit the following documentation:

A completed DD Form 2837, Continued Health Care Benefit Program (CHCBP) Application

Documentation as requested on the enrollment form, such as DD Form 214, final divorce decree, DD Form 1173, copy of your ID card, etc. 

A premium payment for the first 90 days of health coverage

The premium rates are currently $1,813 per quarter for individuals and $4,539 per quarter for families. Humana Military will bill you for subsequent quarterly premiums through your period of eligibility once you are enrolled.

The program uses existing Tricare providers and follows most of the rules and procedures of the Tricare Select program. Depending on your beneficiary category, CHCBP coverage is limited to either 18 or 36 months as follows:

18 months for separating service members and their families

36 months for others who are eligible (In some cases, former spouses who have not remarried may continue coverage beyond 36 months if they meet certain criteria.) 

Tricare for Retirees

All retired military service members are eligible for Tricare health care coverage. This includes eligible spouse and dependents. When you retire from active duty, you and your eligible family members will experience the Tricare benefit in a different way. Here are some things to keep in mind:

Remember that a change in status from active duty to retired requires updating your personal information in the Defense Enrollment Eligibility Reporting System (DEERS).

As a retiree under 65, you must decide which Tricare program is best for you and eligible family members. Your choices include Tricare Prime or Tricare Select.

Visit the Tricare Benefits section to learn more.

Tricare Reserve Select (TRS)

Members and former members of the National Guard and Reserve are able to purchase premium-based health care coverage under Tricare Reserve Select.

Tricare Reserve Select Eligibility

Service members may be eligible to purchase TRS for themselves and their immediate family members if they meet the following three conditions:

If they were called or ordered to active duty under Title 10 in support of a contingency operation for more than 30 consecutive days on or after Sep. 11, 2001.

They served continuously on active duty for 90 days or more.

They must agree to serve in the Selected Reserves.

Check out our Tricare Reserve Select overview to learn more about the costs and benefits of this program.

Tricare Dental Coverage for Guard and Reserve

National Guard and Reserve members separating from active duty after an activation of greater than 30 days in support of a contingency operation are eligible for the Tricare Active Duty Dental Program (ADDP).

CHAMPVA

CHAMPVA (the Civilian Health and Medical Program of the Department of Veterans Affairs) is a federal health benefits program administered by the Department of Veterans Affairs. CHAMPVA provides reimbursement for most medical expenses: inpatient, outpatient, mental health, prescription medication, skilled nursing care, and durable medical equipment. There is a very limited adjunct dental benefit that requires pre-authorization.

Check out our CHAMPVA page for details.

Veterans Health Care

VA provides a medical benefits package, a standard enhanced health benefits plan available to all enrolled veterans.

Eligibility for most veterans health care benefits is based solely on active military service and being discharged under other than dishonorable conditions.

Note: If you are a veteran enrolling for the first time and your income exceeds the current year income threshold, you are not eligible for enrollment at this time. Visit the VA Health Care Eligibility and Priority page to learn more.

Reservists and National Guard members who were called to active duty by a federal executive order may qualify for VA health care benefits. Returning service members, including reservists and National Guard members who served on active duty in a theater of combat operations, have special eligibility for hospital care, medical services, and nursing home care for two years following discharge from active duty.

Important facts about VA health care eligibility:

Health care eligibility is not just for those who served in combat.

Veterans health care is not just for service-connected injuries or medical conditions.

Veterans health care facilities are not for men only. VA offers full-service health care to female veterans.

Click here to get started in determining your eligibility and priority for VA health care benefits.

Keep Up with Changes to Tricare and Your Other Benefits

Want to know about changes in military benefits as they happen? Subscribe to Military.Com to get the latest benefits news delivered directly straight to your inbox.

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Humana Forecasts Growth Of 860,000 Medicare Advantage Members

The health insurer Humana now says its individual enrollment in the popular Advantage plans would ... [+] increase by 35,000 to "approximately 860,000 members this year. In this photo is a Humana office in Louisville, Kentucky, US, on Monday, July 31, 2023. Photographer: Jon Cherry/Bloomberg

© 2023 Bloomberg Finance LP

The health insurer Humana now says its individual enrollment in the popular Advantage plans would increase by 35,000 to "approximately 860,000" members this year.

Such growth, which is a key driver for Humana, means Medicare Advantage membership will see 19% growth over its 2022 ending membership and be ahead of earlier forecasts of 825,000 members in 2023. It also could bode well for 2024 if these new members stick with Humana during the open enrollment period, which started two weeks ago and runs to December 7.

Medicare Advantage plans, which are a large share of Humana's business, contract with the federal government to provide extra benefits and services to seniors, such as disease management and nurse help hotlines, with some also offering vision, dental care and wellness programs.

"Our third quarter results reinforce Humana's commitment to delivering strong earnings growth, especially considering the 19 percent increase in our individual Medicare Advantage membership which significantly outpaces the industry growth rate," Bruce Broussard, Humana's president and chief executive, said Tuesday in announcing the company's third quarter earnings.

In the third quarter, Humana profits were $832 million, or $6.71 per share, compared to $1.19 billion, or $9.39 per share, in the year-ago period. Total revenues increased 16% to $26.4 billion.

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