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Express Scripts and Tricare on Twitter and other social media
Yikes, a week of a much needed medication on hand and the refill is disapproved by Express Scripts/Tricare! What next? We have been a beneficiary of the military medical system for almost 43 years and have found it to be caring, responsive and helpful in most cases but last week we ran into an illogical response to a refill request for a non-formulary medication. I did find a new way to reach out when we needed help quicker than “you can appeal, provide documentation and fill out the paperwork”, etc, etc when you have a week’s worth of medication left. Our family doctor had tried to explain but received…
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Refreshing View from the Top of the Army Reserve – Blogger Roundtable
It was a great interview and so different than most of the other air coming from DC during this political season! Refreshing candor, integrity, willingness to acknowledge the occasional problem being worked,… the newest Chief of the Army Reserve—Lieutenant General Jeffrey Talley spoke with his heart and had the facts on issues affecting the Army Reserve. In addition, this was a great follow on to the blog we posted in August: Are You Ready for the Army Reserve? Or, Is Your Soldier Ready for the Army Reserve? Army Reserve Capabilities – See Below for Photo CreditsFirst off the start line: What does the Army Reserve bring to the fight? Twenty…
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Surviving the Storm – Hurricane Preparedness
Being prepared, it seems to be the motto of military-families worldwide. Hurricane Season is upon us and it is time to start making plans, thinking through what we need to do to be prepared. Some great tips from Hurricane Survivors include: Make sure you have lots of bottled water on hand and fill your bathtub before the storm. Tap water easily becomes contaminated and you won’t want to risk it before it’s checked. Make sure you have plenty of batteries, flashlights, candles, and nonperishable food on hand. – Cathy Keep those laptops and cell phones charged. If you have kids and have no power you’ll want to entertain them somehow.…
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The Sad Truth about the Recent Effort to Raise Tricare Fees
“In fact, the medical budget saved $500M in 2011 and $708M in 2012 from what was budgeted!” Saying Goodbye! See Below for Photo CreditWe are a military family blog team! We care about the team – the military team! Yes, we write about their family needs, job search ideas, issues for veterans and post numerous articles about the military lifestyle and its unique challenges on MilitaryAvenue.com. Today I write as a member of that team with a bit of anger toward the military leadership that we normally so appreciate (I did let this sit for a while so I did not use any inappropriate language, etc). The Department of Defense…
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Fighting Cancer Before It Starts
It was a routine medical appointment, with routine questions. My blood work looked good, my blood pressure was great. My weight… I had gained a few pounds over the winter but for me it’s the typical winter gain that I’ll lose with summer activity. I was a healthy 38 year old. This was a new doctor for me. She started asking family history and cancer was mentioned time and time again. Cancer is one of the leading causes of death in the United States but fortunately, many common types of cancer are treatable if detected early. My mom & my son right after she started chemo.This is one of those very emotional…
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Facebook Lists & Military Support
Have you heard of Facebook’s new list feature? Facebook lists are a great way of consolidating different groups of related information. You can create your own or subscribe to other public lists. This is a great way to stay informed and that is certainly one of MilitaryAvenue’s goals. Helping the military family stay Informed and Empowered: If you would like to empower, educate and stay informed be sure to subscribe to one or more of these lists:Military & Family Empowerment – General Military Facebook pages like United Through Reading, Flat Daddies, The Commissary, Department of Defense and more. Subscribe today: Simply click on the link and then click on Subscribe in…
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Caring for Your Parents from a Long Distance – Military Style Part Two – The Checklist
Sometimes a blog inspires new ideas and last week’s Caring for Your Parents from a Long Distance – Military Style brought up the idea of a checklist that might help others. Much of the same information but in a shorter format without personal details. Think of it as a guide and then add your own ideas too! Share your experiences with others too by commenting! 1 – Caring For Senior Family Member While Long Distance: print a copy of this list and put in your glove box. One never plans for an emergency long distance road trip. However, when called to go, arrive armed with a design for success. 2…
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Caring for Your Parents from a Long Distance – Military Style
Praying for Grandpa and Grandma as they travelOne thing that military families know about is long distance communications! We also face long separations from family and find ourselves frequently traveling a long ways to be with family. Sometimes that makes us better at helping others from a long distance too! We know the phone does not always give a clear perspective of what is going on at the other end. So when the phone rang two weeks ago with an almost distraught family member on the other end we knew there was more to come … We have a large extended family but as the military piece of it we…
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The Army Profession, Drawdown, Army Families and more! DoD Bloggers Roundtable
Army children in youth program … see below for creditChandler said, Secretary of the Army – no cuts to Army programs for families without his specific approval. Did you know that the US Army end strength (total number of active duty soldiers) under the Defense Departments current plan and budget will be at 490,000 after the drawdown is complete? That is the loss of eight brigade combat teams and other resources (80,000 soldiers to be specific). The number of cuts seems to be a bit of a moving target as we talked just recently (December) with the DoD Blogger Roundtable and the number was 50,000! The Sergeant Major of the…
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A Time for All Seasons – DoD Blogger Roundtable
Pentagon Press Secretary George Little“Put Me in Coach”! World and national events make this “A Time for All Seasons” and there is a reason that Friday is a favorite weekday of most! But it was with trepidation that MilitaryAvenue dialed into the DoDLive Bloggers Roundtable Friday afternoon to talk with Pentagon Press Secretary George Little and DoD Spokesman U.S. Navy Capt. John Kirby. Why? – you wonder? We were about to discuss the new 2013 budget proposal from the Pentagon. The subject always seems to be one of the tough issues that never please anyone. Which programs are being cut this time, manpower reductions, aircraft and naval vessel numbers slashed,…
