Skip to main content (Press Enter).
 News
    
        Photos

    Week in Photos

    Air Force TV

    Commentaries

    Features

    Art

    About Us
    
        Air Force Senior Leaders
    
        SECAF

    CSAF

    CMSAF

    Biographies

    Fact Sheets

    SECAF Reading List

    CSAF Leadership Library
    
        CSAF Leadership Library 2022

    CSAF Leadership Library 2021

    CSAF Reading List Pre-2020 Archive
    
        2018 CSAF Reading List

    2017 CSAF Reading List

    2016 CSAF Reading List

    CSAF Leadership Library 2023

    CMSAF Leadership Library

    50 Years of the CMSAF

    Adjunct Professors

    Air Force Strategic Documents

    Arctic Strategy

    Empowered Airmen

    State Licensure Portability

    Careers

    AF Federal Advisory Committees

    AF 75th Anniversary

    Policy Updates

    AF Content Management

    Contact Us

    AF Sites
    
        Site RegistrationU.S. Air Force LogoAir Force

        Policy UpdatesNewsroomReoptimizationBIOGRAPHIESAF Senior Leaders      Active Duty? Enroll to continue TRICARE coverage after retirementPublished April 3, 2018
                    
                    
                    TRICARE Communications
            **FALLS CHURCH, Va. (AFNS)  --**Retiring from active duty, whether a medical retirement or a regular retirement, is a significant life event. You should know before you retire which TRICARE programs best suit your and your family’s needs. Once you retire, you’ll only have 90 days from your retirement date to enroll in a TRICARE plan to continue TRICARE coverage. Otherwise, you will have no TRICARE purchased care coverage and will only be able to access care at military hospitals and clinics on a space-available basis. 
If you retire from active duty and are under age 65, you can choose either TRICARE Prime (where available) or TRICARE Select (available worldwide). You should decide before you retire which one best suits you and your family’s needs.
You may reenroll in TRICARE Prime if you live in a Prime service area, or PSA, or live within 100 miles of an available primary care manager and waive your drive-time access standards. You can see if you live in a PSA by using the TRICARE Plan Finder.
If you choose not to reenroll in TRICARE Prime or don’t live in a PSA, then you may enroll in TRICARE Select. With TRICARE Select, you can see any TRICARE-authorized provider you choose, but you save money when you use TRICARE network providers. Referrals are not required for most health care services, but some services require prior authorization from your TRICARE regional contractor.
If you live overseas, you may seek coverage under TRICARE Overseas Program Select. TOP Prime and TOP Prime Remote options are not available after retirement.
If you or a family member are, or become, entitled to premium-free Medicare part A after your retirement, you or they will lose TRICARE coverage unless enrolled in Medicare part B. With Medicare parts A and B, you or they will have coverage under TRICARE For Life.
For more information on how to enroll in a TRICARE plan, visit Enroll or Purchase a Plan on the TRICARE website. Learn more about TRICARE plans during retirement in the Retiring from Active Duty brochure.Air Force 



TRICARE 



retirement 



AF 



active duty 



program 



TRICARE Prime 



coverage 



TRICARE SELECT 



PSA 



prime service area 



TRICARE Overseas Program Select 



TOP Select 



TRICARE for Life 



Falls Church Featured News
        Senior Leader Priorities
                SecAF, CSAF, CMSAF begin Indo-Pacific trip focused on ACE
                    
                    DAF leaders talk budget, reoptimizing the force
                    
                    DAF leaders speak at National Character and Leadership Symposium
                    
                    DAF members recognized during BEYA STEM awards
                    
                    DAF senior enlisted advisors discuss Airmen, Guardians in the fightInnovation
                F-16s arrive to be modified for autonomous testing
                    
                    AFWERX director discusses role of tech startups, quick innovation in Great Power Competition
                    
                    DAF delivers lethality at the speed of data during Project Convergence Capstone 4
                    
                    DAF welcomes industry partners to HQ development program
                    
                    DAF announces Spark Tank 2024 finalistsMAJCOM News
                Safety enterprise announces new mission, vision, goals in 2024 strategic plan
                    
                    Air Combat Command welcomes new commander
                    
                    USAFE-AFAFRICA commander discusses Integrated Air, Missile Defense during Munich Security Conference
                    
                    Flosi to AFMC family: Embrace change, make every day count
                    
                    AMC rises to increasing global tension
 Quick Links
AccessibilityContact UsEqual OpportunityFOIA | Privacy | Section 508Information QualityInspector GeneralJAG Court-Martial DocketLink DisclaimerNo FEAR ActOpen GovernmentOSI Tip LinePlain LanguageQuestionsResilienceRSSSite MapVeterans Crisis LineCareers
Join the Air ForceAir Force BenefitsAir Force CareersAir Force ReserveAir National GuardCivilian ServiceConnect
            Get Social with Us
            
            Official United States Air Force Website
    Hosted by Defense Media Activity - WEB.mil