[HEALTH.MIL] ER or Urgent Care: Making the Decision & Breastfeeding

  • From: HEALTH.MIL@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
  • To: <HEALTH.MIL@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
  • Date: Mon, 3 Mar 2014 10:42:56 -0600

The ER or Urgent Care: Making the Decision 

2/26/2014 

 

When we're in pain or sick, we're anxious and it can be hard to think straight.
We want relief as soon as possible. When a child is hurt or ill, the anxiety can
be even greater. In those moments, it is can be hard to determine if you need to
go to the emergency room, an emergency center, or if an urgent care center will
do. It's important to make that distinction because making the wrong choice will
cost both time and money. 

Generally, if a condition is threatening to life, limb or eyesight, or causes
the beneficiary to require relief from pain, it is considered an emergency and
calls for a trip to the emergency room. TRICARE defines an emergency department
as an organized, hospital-based facility available 24 hours a day providing
emergency services to patients who need immediate medical attention. Emergency
departments affiliated with a hospital are most likely TRICARE-authorized
providers. Beneficiaries and their families will get the appropriate level of
care and save money by having urgent care needs met in urgent care facilities.

Over the last two decades, over 9,000 urgent care centers have emerged across
the country and this may lead to more urgent care facilities in an area than
emergency rooms. However, beneficiaries who seek care at emergency centers need
to ask if it is affiliated with a hospital-based emergency department. If it
isn't, the beneficiary will need to make a decision about getting care elsewhere
or being responsible for those facility charges.

Beneficiaries can check if a provider is TRICARE-authorized by calling their
regional contractor. Contact information for regional contractors is available
at www.tricare.mil/callus.  Learn more about emergency care under TRICARE at
www.tricare.mil/emergency.

Last Updated 2/27/2014 

 

SOURCE:  TRICARE News Release at
http://www.tricare.mil/LiveWell/HLArticles/Archives/02_26_14_URGENTOREMERGENCY.a
spx

 

 

 

Breastfeeding Provides Real Health Benefits 

2/20/2014 

 

Breastfeeding is special for so many reasons. TRICARE supports healthy behavior
and breastfeeding has health benefits not only for the mother and child, but for
the family and community as well.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, breastfeeding is
one of the most effective steps a mother can take to protect the health of her
baby. Studies have shown that children who are breastfed are spared a number of
prevalent childhood illnesses like ear infections, colds, and asthma. It is also
reported that breastfed children are less like to suffer from childhood obesity.
The American Academy of Pediatrics recommends exclusive breastfeeding for the
first six months and continued breastfeeding for at least the first year as
foods are introduced.

Health guidance and counseling (including breast feeding and nutrition) is
included in TRICARE's well-child coverage
<http://www.tricare.mil/CoveredServices/SeeWhatsCovered/WellChildCare.aspx> from
birth to age six. TRICARE also covers electric hospital-grade breast pumps
<http://www.tricare.mil/CoveredServices/SeeWhatsCovered/BreastPump.aspx>  for
premature infants who meet certain criteria
<http://www.tricare.mil/faq?search=breast%20pump> .  The breast pump may be
covered for use in the hospital, and in certain cases, if the physician can
prove medical necessity, for home use.Medically-necessary services during labor
and delivery including anesthesia, fetal monitoring, and other services required
for care during a beneficiary's hospital stay are also covered. This includes
lactation counseling services if provided during an inpatient maternity stay and
included in the facility's allowed amount. 

Over the last 25 years, the Surgeons General of the United States have worked to
protect, promote, and support breastfeeding. Better infant health means fewer
health insurance claims, less employee time off to care for sick children, and
higher productivity, all of which concern employers and the communities they
support. TRICARE acknowledges the ability to breastfeed is a great privilege and
fully supports families who make this healthy choice. 

Last Updated 2/20/2014 

 

SOURCE:  TRICARE News Release at
http://www.tricare.mil/LiveWell/HLArticles/Archives/02_20_14_BreastfeedingProvid
esHealthBenefits.aspx

 

 

 

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