Government and You E-News - April 15, 2008

1. Kansas and Kentucky Deliver Great News for Military Families! Last week, Kansas Governor Kathleen Sebelius and Kentucky Governor Steve Beshear both signed into law the Interstate Compact on Educational Opportunity for Military Children. NMFA applauds Kansas and Kentucky for being the first states to sign this important compact which will help ease the transition military children face when moving. This year, twenty-one states are considering the compact and 14 of those state legislatures have bills in one or both chambers.

As a member of both the Advisory Committee and Drafting Team, NMFA has been actively supporting the adoption of this compact from its beginning. Military families have long needed the support of individual states during the transition process; whether transferring within a state, from state to state, or from an overseas location. NMFA firmly believes that in order for families to have smoother transitions, each state must become a better “receiving” state as well as “sending” state. By adopting this compact, each state can do its part to alleviate some of the many challenges our military children face when moving.

For further information on the compact, NMFA has provided a link to the Council of State Governments website under our Military Children’s Education section: http://www.nmfa.org/site/PageServer?pagename=childrens_education

2. Apply Now for Military Spouse Financial Counseling Fellowship: Are you interested in an exciting career that offers flexibility, upward mobility, and can move with you? The Association for Financial Counseling and Planning Education® (AFCPE®) in association with the National Military Family Association (NMFA) and the FINRA Investor Education Foundation is pleased to announce applications are being accepted for the Military Spouse Fellowship for the Accredited Financial Counselor Program. This program will provide up to 200 military spouses with the education necessary to enter the financial counseling career field.

The fellowship covers the costs associated with completing the Accredited Financial Counselor (AFC) training and testing. Upon successful completion of the program and required practicum, the participant will be awarded the Accredited Financial Counselor designation from AFCPE.

Many employers such as credit unions, financial aid offices, and community housing agencies need well-trained, ethical and caring financial counselors to meet the increasing demand for financial counseling services. Military spouses can fill this need while building a rewarding career that is flexible to the demands of the military family lifestyle.

Time is running out, applications must be received by April 30th. Apply now!

3. Happy Tax Day! Most Americans know today is the due date for filing federal tax returns. Some military families are not required to file a federal return because their income levels fall below the minimum filing threshold. This year these families should consider filing.

Starting in May, the Treasury will begin sending economic stimulus payments to more than 130 million households. To receive a payment, taxpayers must have a valid Social Security number, $3,000 of income and file a 2007 federal tax return. Eligible people will receive up to $600 ($1,200 for married couples), and parents will receive an additional $300 for each eligible child younger than 17. Millions of retirees, disabled veterans and low-wage workers who usually are exempt from filing a tax return must do so this year in order to receive a stimulus payment.

Economic stimulus payments will be issued according to the last two-digits of the main filer's Social Security number. People who use direct deposit will be among the first to receive payments starting May 2. Paper checks will be put in the mail beginning May 16 and will be mailed to the last known address on file with the IRS. If you have moved, you should file a Form 8822 with the IRS and a change of address notice with the U.S. Postal Service. This will ensure your check is sent to your new address. Without your current address, the check could be returned to the IRS as undeliverable.

Complete details regarding the stimulus program are available on the IRS website: http://www.irs.gov/newsroom/article/0,,id=177937,00.html.

4. GAO Report Finds Retail Drug Spending Costly for DoD: The United States Government Accounting Office (GAO) released a report to Congressional committees titled, “DoD Pharmacy Program: Continued Efforts Needed to Reduce Growth in Spending at Retail Pharmacies”, GAO-08-327. According to the report, the Department of Defense (DoD) spent over $6.2 billion on medications in fiscal year 2006 (FY06), which is a three-fold increase over $1.6 billion spent in FY 2000. Spending at TRICARE Retail Pharmacies (TRRx) was found to be the reason totaling $3.9 billion and 63 percent of overall drug spending in FY06. Over 2 million TRICARE beneficiaries used only retail pharmacies.

DoD has tried to address prescription drug spending in several ways: through its uniform formulary, voluntary manufacture rebates, and beneficiary use of TRICARE Mail Order Pharmacy (TMOP). The uniform formulary helped DoD avoid spending $916 million in FY07. DoD has collected over $28 million in FY07 from voluntary manufacturer rebates for formulary drugs that were dispensed to beneficiaries in retail pharmacies. DoD started an outreach initiative of TMOP benefits in 2006 to encourage beneficiaries to use this as an alternative method when getting medications. NMFA, along with the Military Coalition, played a large role in getting this implemented. DoD also established a Member Choice Center to help beneficiaries easily move their prescription refills to TMOP in August 2007. According to Express Scripts, this has provided over $800,000 savings to beneficiaries and $9.3 million to DoD. For more information on TMOP and MCC download the factsheet on our website, www.nmfa.org.

There are two factors that will play a role in DoD’s ability to limit future drug spending. They include the recent Task Force on the Future of the Military Health Care’s report and the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2008 (NDAA FY08). The Task Force has recommended changes to the pharmaceutical tier structure and copayments in order to encourage beneficiaries to buy certain medications and purchase drugs from more cost-saving sources, such as TMOP. The NDAA FY08 included a federal drug pricing provision for medications dispensed in retail pharmacies to help decrease retail spending. However, these many not be enough. According to the GAO, DoD will need to monitor these changes for its impact on cost savings and determine what other initiatives may be necessary to ensure fiscal responsibilities.

NMFA believes the focus should not be solely on cost-savings when making decisions, but must include looking at the affect these changes may have on beneficiaries behaviors and its economic impact. NMFA encourages Congress to require DoD to utilize peer-reviewed research involving beneficiaries and prescription drug benefit options, along with performing additional research involving TRICARE beneficiaries, before making any recommendations on prescription drug benefit changes, such as copayment and tier structure changes for military service members, retirees, and their families. NMFA also recommends DoD must look for additional ways to implement savings. We believe it is imperative for all of the medications available through TRRx be made available through TMOP. Medications for treating chronic conditions, such as asthma, diabetes, and hypertension should be made available at the lowest level of copayment regardless of brand or generic status. NMFA also agrees with the Task Force’s recommendations for Over the Counter (OTC) drugs to be a covered pharmacy benefit and for there to be a zero co-payment for TMOP Tier 1 medications.

To view the report on the GAO webpage: http://www.gao.gov/index.html. Search by report number: 08-327.

5. NMFA Comments on FMLA Regulations: The comment period on the Notice of Proposed Rule Making regarding regulations for the military expansion of the Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) closed Friday. As discussed in previous editions of the Government and You ENews, Congress expanded FMLA protections for military familiy members in National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) for 2008. Currently the Department of Labor (DoL) is crafting the regulations to govern the expanded coverage.

In addition to submitting comments, NMFA signed on to the comments of the National Partnership for Women and Families, the organization that drafted the original legislation 15 years ago.

To read NMFA’s comments, visit our website at: http://www.nmfa.org/site/PageServer?pagename=testimonies.

To view the comments of the National Partnership for Women and Families go to: http://www.nationalpartnership.org/site/PageServer?pagename=ourwork_fmla_FMLARegulations.

6. Children’s Website Retooled: The American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) has recently redesigned and updated their Military Child and Youth Deployment Support website. With new information and resources, this site provides needed mental health support to military children, families, and youth professionals who serve the military community. Areas of interest include: advocacy and awareness; research; best practices; links to resources for parents; and video support programs such as, "Military Youth Coping with Separation: When Family Members Deploy" and "Mr. Poe and Friends Discuss Reunion after Deployment".

Visit the AAP website at: www.aap.org/sections/uniformedservices/deployment/index.html

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