TRICARE Equality Act
Summary
What This Bill Does
The TRICARE Equality Act targets a specific gap in military health administration for Puerto Rico. It directs the Secretary of Defense to designate TRICARE Prime geographic areas in Puerto Rico using the same approach used for the States, to make Puerto Rico-based individuals eligible for TRICARE travel and transportation allowances when they would qualify but for their location, and to coordinate federal electronic health record sharing with the Puerto Rico Department of Health through the Joint Health Information Exchange. The bill also requires an implementation report to the Armed Services Committees within 180 days.
Who Benefits and How
TRICARE beneficiaries in Puerto Rico benefit because Prime availability and travel allowances would be administered on a more equal footing with beneficiaries in the States. Puerto Rico military families benefit because travel support can reduce the cost of reaching covered specialty or military health care. Puerto Rico health providers benefit from better federal health-information exchange coordination with Defense and VA-linked records. Congressional Armed Services Committees benefit from a 180-day implementation report that creates oversight leverage.
Who Bears the Burden and How
The Defense Health Agency must update geographic designations, travel-benefit administration, and related TRICARE guidance for Puerto Rico. The Secretary of Defense may need to revise title 37 travel regulations to administer the Puerto Rico allowance change. The Federal Electronic Health Record Modernization Office must coordinate data-sharing work with the Puerto Rico Department of Health. Federal taxpayers bear any added cost from expanded travel allowances and implementation work.
Key Provisions
- Requires Puerto Rico TRICARE Prime area designations to be made in a manner similar to State designations.
- Expands TRICARE travel and transportation allowance eligibility for individuals located in Puerto Rico.
- Directs federal electronic health record coordination with the Puerto Rico Department of Health.
- Requires a Defense Department implementation report to the Armed Services Committees within 180 days.
Evidence Chain:
This summary is generated from the full bill text using AI analysis. Expand "Detailed Analysis" below for identified beneficiaries/burden bearers with clause-level evidence links.
At a Glance
What This Bill Does
Requires the Defense Department to treat Puerto Rico more like a State for TRICARE Prime area designation, TRICARE travel allowances, and federal health-information exchange coordination.
Key Policy Areas
Health Care, Defense, Puerto Rico
Primary Purpose
Requires the Defense Department to treat Puerto Rico more like a State for TRICARE Prime area designation, TRICARE travel allowances, and federal health-information exchange coordination.
Policy Domains
Resolution provisions
Identified Gains
- TRICARE beneficiaries in Puerto Rico
- Puerto Rico military families
- Puerto Rico health providers
- Congressional Armed Services Committees
Identified Costs
- Defense Health Agency
- Secretary of Defense
- Federal Electronic Health Record Modernization Office
- Federal taxpayers
Sponsors
Legislative Progress
In CommitteeMr. Hernández (for himself, Ms. Brownley, and Ms. Norton) introduced …
Referred to the House Committee on Armed Services.
Introduced in House
Stakeholder Effects
cui bono?How this legislation distributes effects. Mention counts reflect frequency, not effect magnitude.
Puerto Rico health providers, TRICARE beneficiaries in Puerto Rico
Defense Health Agency, Federal Electronic Health Record Modernization Office
Bill Structure & Actor Mappings
Who is "The Secretary" in each section?
We use a combination of our own taxonomy and classification in addition to large language models to assess meaning and potential beneficiaries. High confidence means strong textual evidence. Always verify with the original bill text.
Learn more about our methodology