II 

112TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION S. 3203 

To amend title 10, United States Code, to limit increases in the certain 

costs of health care services under the health care programs of the 

Department of Defense, and for other purposes. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

MAY 17, 2012 

Mr. LAUTENBERG (for himself and Mr. RUBIO) introduced the following bill; 

which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Armed Services 

A BILL 

To amend title 10, United States Code, to limit increases 

in the certain costs of health care services under the 

health care programs of the Department of Defense, 

and for other purposes. 

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

4 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Military Health Care 

5 Protection Act of 2012’’. 

6 SEC. 2. SENSE OF CONGRESS. 

7 (a) SENSE OF CONGRESS.—It is the sense of Con8 gress that— 


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1 (1) career members of the uniformed services 

2 and their families endure unique and extraordinary 

3 demands and make extraordinary sacrifices over the 

4 course of a 20-year to 30-year career in protecting 

5 freedom for all Americans; and 

6 (2) those decades of sacrifice constitute a sig7 nificant pre-paid premium for health care during a 

8 career member’s retirement that is over and above 

9 what the member pays with money. 

10 SEC. 3. LIMITATIONS ON CERTAIN INCREASES IN HEALTH 

11 CARE COSTS FOR UNIFORMED SERVICES 

12 BENEFICIARIES. 

13 (a) PHARMACY BENEFITS PROGRAM.—Section 

14 1074g(a)(6) of title 10, United States Code, is amended 

15 by adding at the end the following new subparagraph: 

16 ‘‘(C) The amount of any cost sharing requirements 

17 under this paragraph may not be increased in any year 

18 by a percentage that exceeds the percentage by which re19 tired pay is increased under section 1401a(b)(2) of this 

20 title. Increases shall be made only in whole dollar 

21 amounts. To the extent that the percentage increase under 

22 such section 1401a(b)(2) in any year would yield an in23 crease of less than one dollar, the accumulated increase 

24 shall be carried over to the subsequent year, until the ac25 cumulated increase equals at least one dollar.’’. 


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1 (b) DEDUCTIBLE AMOUNTS UNDER CHAMPUS.— 

2 (1) SELF-ONLY COVERAGE.—Subsection 

3 1086(b)(1) of such title is amended by adding at the 

4 end the following sentences: ‘‘For each fiscal year 

5 beginning after September 30, 2012, the Secretary 

6 of Defense may only increase the deductible amount 

7 by a percentage not to exceed the percentage by 

8 which retired pay is increased under section 

9 1401a(b)(2) of this title. Any resulting increase shall 

10 be rounded down to the nearest whole dollar.’’. 

11 (2) FAMILY COVERAGE.—Subsection 1086(b)(2) 

12 of such title is amended by adding at the end the 

13 following sentences: ‘‘For each fiscal year beginning 

14 after September 30, 2012, the Secretary of Defense 

15 may only increase the deductible amount by a per16 centage not to exceed the percentage by which re17 tired pay is increased under section 1401a(b)(2) of 

18 this title. Any resulting increase shall be rounded 

19 down to the nearest whole dollar.’’. 

20 (c) INPATIENT CHARGES UNDER CHAMPUS.—Sec21 tion 1086(b)(3) of such title is amended by striking ‘‘25 

22 percent’’ and all that follows through ‘‘September 30, 

23 2011.’’ and inserting ‘‘25 percent of the charges for inpa24 tient care, except that in no case shall such charges exceed 

25 $708 per day.’’. 


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1 (d) CATASTROPHIC CAP ON FEES UNDER

2 CHAMPUS.—Section 1086(b)(4) of such title is amend3 ed— 

4 (1) by striking ‘‘A member’’ and inserting ‘‘For 

5 fiscal years ending before October 1, 2012, a’’; and 

6 (2) by adding at the end the following new sen7 tences: ‘‘For each fiscal year beginning after Sep8 tember 30, 2012, the Secretary of Defense may only 

9 increase the amount in the preceding sentence by a 

10 percentage not to exceed the percentage by which re11 tired pay is increased under section 1401a(b)(2) of 

12 this title. Any resulting increase shall be rounded 

13 down to the nearest whole dollar.’’. 

14 (e) PROHIBITION OF ENROLLMENT FEES FOR CER15 TAIN PERSONS UNDER CHAMPUS.—Section 1086(b) of 

16 such title is further amended by adding at the end the 

17 following new paragraphs: 

18 ‘‘(5) A person covered by subsection (c) may 

19 not be charged an enrollment fee for coverage under 

20 this section. 

21 ‘‘(6) A person covered by subsection (c) shall 

22 not be subject to denial of claims for coverage under 

23 this section for failure to enroll for such coverage. 

24 To the extent enrollment may be required, enroll25 ment shall be automatic for any such person filing 


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1 a claim under this section. In such cases of auto2 matic enrollment, annual re-enrollment shall be 

3 automatic unless the beneficiary expressly declines to 

4 re-enroll.’’. 

Æ 


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