Tri-Care Prime Question:-S

Hello Everyone I am new to this process, and we are PCS'ing to Eglin AFB in Aug. and I am wanting some info. on how to get started with the process of getting approvel for the surgery. How long did it take from your referal from your PCM to see a sergon, and then how long did it take from there for approval, and then to get your date?? Like i said sorry if the questions sound dumb, I am just desprete at this point, and need to get this done! I know what this surgery is not a quick fix, it is a tool to help me become healthy, and that is all that I want! I am also new to this site, so any info on helping here also would be great!!!!! Thanks in advance, Crystal

Crystal- Your questions are not dumb. I think your questions are perfectly reasonable. I wish I could help you but I really do not know that much about how long any of this takes when it comes to Prime and particularly as it pertains to active duty. I have Tricare Standard, but my DH is retired so we do not have to deal with a MTF or any that. I can tell you as a rule Tricare is very easy to deal with and moves pretty quickly. From what I have read this is true on the active duty side as well. I think a great deal will depend on how long it will take you to get your testing done. Things like your psych eval and such. I wonder if you could go ahead and start on some of that prior to your PCS. It might be worth checking into. August is a long time to wait. Please come here and post your questions often. There are several people who have Tricare who post on this board. Good luck and welcome to the Florida board, we are glad you are joining us. Red

Hi there Crystal, My pcm is at Patrick airforce base and it took me from September of 2004 to March of 2005 to complete my approval process. It slowed because of a health issue but usually you can do it in a few months going through with all your pre op appointments and such. Tri care was wonderful and took care of everything I needed. Best of luck. Kirsten RNY 3/16/05 300/146

Hi Crystal , I had my surgery done at Eglin AFB Hospital on 11-20-03. I went to my PCM for my annual pap in Sept, I had her put in the referral then. I got a call two days after the referral was submitted, I had my appointment the next week. It took two months from start to finish. However, I did have my surgery on base, so no approval was needed through Tricare. My surgeon was located at the base, as he is Active Duty. My doctor is PCS'ing in July, so they are now referring everyone off base for surgery. There are a couple of surgeons in the Pensacola area that do the surgery. Tricare regularly referrs to them. They are Dr. Nye and Dr. Lord. I believe that the process for approval should not take too long. As long as the Surgeon has given all the necessary info to Tricare to get approval, you should have no problem. Both of the Surgeons in Pensacola, do this on a regular basis and are very familiar with Tricare guidelines. I wish you the best of luck, and if you have any other questions, please feel free to ask me. Hugs, Beth BTW: Welcome to Sunny Florida. Also, I work at the Tricare Service Center here in Fort Walton Beach, so don't hesitate to e-mail me and ask any questions that you like!!!!

Crystal, I am retired but I use Tricare Prime. I am in Panama City, which is about a 45 min drive from Eglin. There is a surgeon here, Dr. Richard Wilson, who is a Tricare Prime provider. He is the one that performed my procedure. It took me 3-4 months from initiation to having my surgery. The lady that takes care of all the insurance issues for Dr. Wilson told me that Tricare is the easiest ins. company for them to get approval from. Welcome to the North Florida area and I hope you are able to get everything worked out in your favor. Jerry