Military's Tricare centers to shut down

One hundred eighty-nine (189) Tricare Service Centers across the country – which provide administrative walk-in services for eligible members of the military health care system - will shutdown beginning April 1 in efforts to save the Defense Department about $250 million over the next five years. The shutdown does not affect Tricare medical benefits or health services. Among the TSCs to close in Mississippi: Meridian Naval Air Station and Columbus Air Force Base; in Louisiana at NAS/JRB New Orleans in Belle Chasse, Coast Guard Clinic New Orleans, and Fort Polk near Alexandria. Tricare beneficiaries can still accomplish administrative tasks online (tricare.mil/tsc) or by calling the system’s toll-free (800-444-5445). TSCs in Florida to close: Pensacola Naval Hospital, Eglin Air Force Base hospital, Tyndall AFB’s 325th Medical Group, and Hurlburt Field’s 16th Medical Group; and nearby in Alabama at Fort Rucker’s Lyster Army hospital, Coast Guard Clinic Mobile, Fox Army hospital at Redstone near Huntsville and at Maxwell AFB near Montgomery. Source: Armed Forces Press Service, Jan. 13, 2014.