If you aren't already familiar with TRICARE, here's the scoop: It's the government-managed health care insurance program for U.S. uniformed service members, retirees and their families worldwide, currently providing coverage for 9.4 million – yes, you read that correctly – eligible beneficiaries.
Here's another scoop, and it's a huge one for the chiropractic profession: TRICARE appears poised to include chiropractic services in its coverage, according to Military.com,* which cites "a document distributed to military support organizations this week." According to the site, the document stipulates that the new policy providing chiropractic coverage will be proposed within the next few months, "issued in an official regulation change notice no later than early next year."
Currently, chiropractic is not covered by TRICARE; neither is acupuncture, which is also mentioned in the document as a service that will be covered per the proposed policy change.
While TRICARE does not cover chiropractic or acupuncture (yet), both services are available at a limited number of Veterans Administration and Department of Defense facilities.
TRICARE is particularly important because if the Military Health System, overseen by the DoD, or the VA cannot accommodate the demand for care, TRICARE provides coverage at civilian hospitals and health care facilities.
It is unclear as of press time which specific chiropractic (and acupuncture) services will be covered if and when the policy change takes effect, although according to Military.com, the document says covered services "must be proven safe and effective." Stay tuned.
*Military.com touts itself as "the largest online military and veteran membership organization" (10 million members). Membership is free and "connects servicemembers, military families and veterans to all the benefits of service – government benefits, scholarships, discounts, lifelong friends, mentors, great stories of military life or missions, and much more."
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Pain has become the dominant language of musculoskeletal healthcare. Numeric pain-rating scales and symptom reports are routinely used as primary indicators of clinical success. But while pain reduction is meaningful, it is an incomplete and often misleading representation of recovery. This has real consequences for patient adherence, long-term outcomes, and how conservative care is perceived within the broader healthcare system.
