Given proposed military medical staffing reductions, the Defense Health Agency and the services are working together closely so access to care and availability of health services are consistently maintained for beneficiaries, the DHA director said on Capitol Hill yesterday.
Navy Vice Adm. (Dr.) Raquel C. Bono told the Senate Appropriations Committee that as needed, alternative staffing models, contracts, military-civilian partnerships and existing TRICARE networks will be used to best meet the needs of patients.
“We will continue to meet all standards for timely access for our beneficiaries, and while our health care delivery locations may change, our commitment to provide our patients with the high-quality health care that they deserve will remain steadfast,” she said.
Bono said that although she couldn't speak directly to manpower positions the services have identified to be cut, “I can speak to how we are working together to make sure that our patients continue to have the access to the care they need as well as the specialty services.”
Market-Based Approach
In that regard, she said, “we'll look at different models of either hiring, contracting or the use of our networks.”
“We're also moving to a market-based approach to the delivery of our care, where we will share resources across all the services in…
