Alaska Tries Higher Tricare Payments:

In an effort to bolster health care access and services for military personnel and their families scattered throughout Alaska, the Pentagon on Feb. 1 plans to start a three-year test during which Tricare will offer physicians reimbursement at 1.35 times above standard Tricare rates. According to a Tricare Management Activity release, the decision to run the test stems from an “overall scarcity of providers, their reluctance to accept Tricare payment rates, transportation issues, and other factors.”