PUBLIC LAW 109–163—JAN. 6, 2006
119 STAT. 3353
(5) the use of flexible spending accounts and health savings accounts for military retirees under the age of 65; (6) incentives for eligible beneficiaries of the military health care system to retain private employer-provided health care insurance; (7) means of improving integrated systems of disease management, including chronic illness management; (8) means of improving the safety and efficiency of pharmacy benefits management; (9) the management of enrollment options for categories of eligible beneficiaries in the military health care system; (10) reform of the provider payment system, including the potential for use of a pay-for-performance system in order to reward quality and efficiency in the TRICARE system; (11) means of improving efficiency in the administration of the TRICARE program, to include the reduction of headquarters and redundant management layers, and maximizing efficiency in the claims processing system; (12) other improvements in the efficiency of the military health care system; and (13) any other matters the Secretary considers appropriate to improve the efficiency and quality of military health care benefits. SEC. 734. COMPTROLLER GENERAL STUDIES AND REPORT ON DIFFERENTIAL PAYMENTS TO CHILDREN’S HOSPITALS FOR HEALTH CARE FOR CHILDREN DEPENDENTS AND MAXIMUM ALLOWABLE CHARGE FOR OBSTETRICAL CARE SERVICES UNDER TRICARE.
(a) STUDIES REQUIRED.—The Comptroller General of the United States shall conduct the following studies: (1) A study of the effectiveness of the current system of differential payments to children’s hospitals for health care services for dependent children of members of the uniformed services under the TRICARE program in achieving the objective of securing adequate health care services for such dependent children under that program. (2) A study of the effectiveness of the TRICARE program in achieving the objective of adequate access to high quality obstetrical care services for family members of members of the uniformed services. (b) ELEMENTS OF CHILDREN’S HOSPITALS STUDY.—The study required by subsection (a)(1) shall include the following: (1) A description of the current participation of children’s hospitals in the TRICARE program. (2) An assessment of the current system of payments to children’s hospitals under the TRICARE program, including differential payments to such hospitals for health care services described in subsection (a)(1), including an assessment of— (A) the extent to which the calculation of such differential payments takes into account the complexity and extraordinary resources required for the provision of such health care services; (B) the extent to which TRICARE payment rates, including the children’s hospital differential, have kept pace with inflation in health care costs for children’s hospitals since the establishment of the differential in 1988;
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