If President Obama and Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel get their way, a typical U.S. Army sergeant stands to lose up to $5,000 in annual benefits, according to a leading veterans group that is mobilizing for battle over the proposed cuts to the retirement, health care and other compensation offered to those who serve. The budget restructuring outlined by Mr. Hagel last month calls for a series of politically tricky compensation reductions that risk outraging active-duty and retired service members who signed up for duty with the belief that they could rely on a rock-solid pension system to help pay for expenses such as food, housing, health care and college tuition for their children. Retired Army Maj. Karel Butler said, “the stress that your family goes through, that your body goes through in a 20-year career, is tremendous. And for them to even consider reducing those benefits is a slap in the face.” Retired Air Force Col. Mike Hayden, who heads government relations at MOAA., claims the cuts, may result in an increase in the number of active service members who decide not to renew their military contracts. Under the current system, service members typically do not qualify for retirement pay until they have served for 20 years. The proposed change would allow troops who have served just six years to begin receiving such pay, but at the cost of smaller average monthly pension checks over the long term. Separately, the Obama administration is pushing for a change to the military health insurance program known as Tricare. The Pentagon wants to merge Tricare’s three options. The consolidation would require “modest increases in co-pays and deductibles that encourage using the most affordable means of care,” he said. Although the Pentagon continues to provide free health care to active-duty service members, the proposed changes would require those members to contribute more. Retirees also would face a modest co-pay increase. Maggie Ybarra If President Obama and Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel get their way, a typical U.S. Army sergeant stands to lose up to $5,000 in annual benefits, according to a leading veterans group that is mobilizing for battle over the proposed cuts to the retirement, health care and other compensation offered to those who serve. The budget restructuring outlined by Mr. Hagel last month calls for a series of politically tricky compensation reductions that risk outraging active-duty and retired service members who signed up for duty with the belief that they could rely on a rock-solid pension system to help pay for expenses such as food, housing, health care and college tuition for their children. Retired Army Maj. Karel Butler said, “the stress that your family goes through, that your body goes through in a 20-year career, is tremendous. And for them to even consider reducing those benefits is a slap in the face.” Retired Air Force Col. Mike Hayden, who heads government relations at MOAA., claims the cuts, may result in an increase in the number of active service members who decide not to renew their military contracts. Under the current system, service members typically do not qualify for retirement pay until they have served for 20 years. The proposed change would allow troops who have served just six years to begin receiving such pay, but at the cost of smaller average monthly pension checks over the long term. Separately, the Obama administration is pushing for a change to the military health insurance program known as Tricare. The Pentagon wants to merge Tricare’s three options. The consolidation would require “modest increases in co-pays and deductibles that encourage using the most affordable means of care,” he said. Although the Pentagon continues to provide free health care to active-duty service members, the proposed changes would require those members to contribute more. Retirees also would face a modest co-pay increase. Maggie Ybarra
Posted on: Fri, 14 Mar 2014 02:57:09 +0000