U.S. and North Korean negotiators have reached an agreement for 2001 under which joint teams will recover the remains of Americans in action from the Korean War, marking the sixth consecutive year that the United States will conduct remains recovery operations in North Korea.

The 2001 agreement significantly expands the size of the U.S. teams, increases the length of U.S. activities and adds areas of operations around the Chosin Reservoir to the current areas in Unsan and Kujang counties, approximately 60 miles north of the capital of Pyongyang.

During the five operations in 2000 in the Unsan and Kujang areas, joint teams recovered 65 sets of remains. Forty-two were recovered in the four previous years. Five have been positively identified, with another 10 nearing the final stages of identification. More than 8,100 servicemen are missing in action from the Korean War.

Operations in 2001 will include areas of investigation near Kaechon, approximately 18 miles south of Unsan and Kujang. Kaechon includes an area nicknamed the "Gauntlet," where the U.S. Army's 2nd Infantry Division conducted its famous fighting withdrawal along a narrow road through six miles of Chinese ambush positions during November and December 1950. More than 950 missing in action soldiers are believed to be located in these three areas.

The Chosin Reservoir campaign left approximately 750 Marines and soldiers missing in action from both the east and west sides of the reservoir in northeastern North Korea.

More information on U.S. recovery efforts is available at http://www.dtic.mil/dpmo or http://www.cilhi.amy.mil.

LIFETIME MEDICAL CARE IS HERE FOR MILITARY RETIREES

Recent legislation has greatly enhanced the government's promise of lifetime medical care for retirees. On Monday, October 30th, the President signed the FY2001 Defense Authorization Act into law -- including provisions authorizing TRICARE-for-life and pharmacy coverage for Medicare-eligible, and allocating part of the government surplus to establish a trust fund that makes this coverage a mandatory entitlement that will not have to compete for funding with the rest of the Defense budget.

Tricare for Life will start on October 1, 2001. It is for Military Retirees, their spouses, and surviving spouses who qualify for Medicare Part B. To participate you must have Medicare PART B. If you are not currently enrolled in Medicare Part B, you may enroll in the program at your nearest SSA office during the General Enrollment Period (January 1- March 31) to become eligible for Part B benefits on July 1, 2001. The cost of Part B may go up10% for each 12-month period that you could have had Part B but did not take it.

The first thing DOD is planning to have on line is TRICARE STANDARD for everyone. That is a fee for service program. Medicare Part B will be the first payer and Tricare Standard will pick up the rest. The beneficiary must stay in Medicare Part B and will have the yearly Medicare deductible. There will be NO additional Tricare co-pays, fees or deductibles. The questions of TRICARE PRIME and the use of the MTFs (Military Treatment Facilities) will be handled later.

At this time the plan does not require the beneficiary to actually enroll in Tricare for Life. All the retiree will need to qualify for Tricare for Life is his or her Medicare Part B card and his or her Military I.D. Medicare is the primary payer under the TRICARE-for-life and the only criterion is that a provider accepts Medicare patients. Beneficiaries who are eligible for Medicare, but enter into "private contracts" with providers who do not see Medicare patients or participate in the Medicare program do so at their own expense. Since none of the regulations have been written yet there may be some changes in the details.

New rules included in the law are:

• Reduction of the catastrophic cap on out-of-pocket expenses for retired TRICARE Standard users from $7,500 to $3,000 per year.
• Elimination of copayments for active duty family members enrolled in TRICARE Prime, and provides PRIME-level benefits to families assigned to areas where PRIME is not available.
• Prohibits imposing requirements for TRICARE beneficiaries to obtain preapproval or non-availability statements (NAS) except under specific conditions related to funding or readiness.
• Travel expense reimbursement for TRICARE Prime beneficiaries referred to a provider more than 100 miles from the primary provider's location.