Kathleen Larkin, Director, Health Plan Policy Division of Health Affairs/ TRICARE Management Activity
Kathleen Larkin, Director, Health Plan Policy Division of Health Affairs/ TRICARE Management Activity.
Caring for ill or wounded service members is a high priority for TRICARE. TRICARE understands this can also be a challenging job for family members or friends put in this caregiving role. Even though many families take great joy in providing care to their loved ones so that they can remain at home, the physical and emotional stress can be overwhelming without some support.
Understanding active duty family members are often the caregivers, respite care, or time off, allows your family member to get needed rest if you are ever injured or wounded.
TRICARE’s respite care benefit is provided to a wounded or ill active duty service member (ADSM) and some beneficiaries in the extended care health option program as well. The injury may result in a physical disability or a challenging physical or psychological condition so severe that the ADSM is left homebound.
TRICARE’s respite care benefit offers short-term care for you to provide rest and change for your primary caregiver – your family member or friend – who has been caring and assisting you with activities of daily living in your home.
Your case manager (or other approving authority – military medical support office, service point of contact, referring military treatment facility, TRICARE Area Office, etc.) may approve respite care when the care plan includes frequent primary caregiver interventions (more than two during the eight-hour period each day that the primary caregiver would normally be sleeping).
Respite care benefits are limited to:
- Up to 40 respite hours in a calendar week
- No more than five days per calendar week
- No more than eight hours per calendar day
Respite care must be provided by a TRICARE-authorized Home Health Agency (HHA). You can contact your regional health care contractor or TRICARE Area Office for assistance finding an authorized HHA.
Authorized respite care does not cover care for family members or others who may reside with or visit you. To learn more about the respite care benefit, go to TRICARE’s website.
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