PSA: IF YOU HAVE TRICARE, YOU MAY NEED TO CALL THE DEERS CONTACT NUMBER

The Defense Health Agency (DHA) has announced that those with service connections to the U.S. Coast Guard (USCG), the National Oceanic Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), and the U.S. Public Health Service (USPHS), who have TRICARE eligibility, may need to contact the Defense Enrollment Eligibility Reporting System (DEERS) due to an error leaving many without coverage. Here’s what has been disclosed already. Get the information you need to reach the DEERS office, including the contact number.

Why TRICARE Beneficiaries Need to Call the DEERS Contact Number

In total, around 16,000 TRICARE beneficiaries connected to the USCG, NOAA, and USPHS, lost their eligibility sometime in late October to early November and may need to call the DEERS contact number.

By calling DEERS, TRICARE beneficiaries can confirm that they are in the clear, although the issue was fixed on November 3, 2024.

The Issue at Hand for TRICARE Beneficiaries

Some sort of accident lasting around 48 hours caused affected retirees and family members connected to the USCG, NOAA, and USPHS, to become dropped from DEERS, prompting the DHC to let everyone know that they may need to contact the DEERS Support office.

On November 1, 2024, TRICARE was directing people to contact their regional contractors before the issue was fixed.

So far, it’s believed that a data transfer issue would cause files to end up missing records, causing an obvious error for thousands.

The data transfer into DEERS is part of an ongoing process by the DHA and other regional contractors to prepare for new TRICARE contracts beginning on January 1, 2025.

This follows the DHA announcing a freeze on enrollment globally from October 25th to October 27, 2024.

Currently, and through December 31, 2024, TRICARE beneficiaries will need to contact their regional contractors to make changes to their healthcare plan—this includes the open season, beginning on November 11, 2024.

Furthermore, if you’re planning to update your healthcare plan via milConnect through the Beneficiary Web Enrollment system, you won’t be able to do so through December 31, 2024.

DEERS Contact Number and Information

Were you affected by or believe you were affected by the the TRICARE data transfer? You can call the DMDC/DEERS Support office to clarification on the issue, and to get confirmation that you are still eligible for healthcare.

You can call the DEERS contact number for TRICARE eligibility at 800-538-9552. For more DEERS contact info and updates, your military base may also be able to assist you.

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