[Federal Register: December 31, 2008 (Volume 73, Number 251)]
[Notices]               
[Page 80368-80369]
From the Federal Register Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]
[DOCID:fr31de08-36]                         

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DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE

Office of the Secretary

[Docket ID: DoD-2008-HA-0167]

 
Proposed Collection; Comment Request

AGENCY: Office of the Assistant Secretary of Defense for Health 
Affairs, DoD.

ACTION: Notice.

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    In compliance with section 3506(c)(2)(A) of the Paperwork Reduction 
Act of 1995, the Office of the Assistant Secretary of Defense for 
Health Affairs announces a proposed public information collection and 
seeks public comment on the provisions thereof. Comments are invited 
on: (a) Whether the proposed collection of information is necessary for 
the proper performance of the functions of the agency, including 
whether the information shall have practical utility; (b) the accuracy 
of the agency's estimate of the burden of the proposed information 
collection; (c) ways to enhance the quality, utility, and clarity of 
the information to be collected; and (d) ways to minimize the burden of 
the information collection on respondents, including through the use of 
automated collection techniques or other forms of information 
technology.

DATES: Consideration will be given to all comments received by March 2, 
2009.

ADDRESSES: You may submit comments, identified by docket number and 
title, by any of the following methods:
     Federal eRulemaking Portal: http://www.regulations.gov. 
Follow the instructions for submitting comments.
     Mail: Federal Docket Management System Office, 1160 
Defense Pentagon, Washington, DC 20301-1160.
    Instructions: All submissions received must include the agency 
name, docket number and title for this Federal Register document. The 
general policy for comments and other submissions from members of the 
public is to make these submissions available for public viewing on the 
Internet at http://www.regulations.gov as they are received without 
change, including any personal identifiers or contact information.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: To request more information on this 
proposed information collection or to obtain a copy of the proposal and 
associated collection instruments, please write to Lt. Col. Judith 
Schulik, TRICARE Policy and Operations, TRICARE Management Activity, 
5111 Leesburg Pike, Suite 810, Falls Church, VA 22041, telephone (703) 
681-0039.
    Title; Associated Form; and OMB Number: Certification of non-
contributory TRICARE supplemental insurance plan; OMB Control Number 
0720-TBD.
    Needs and Uses: Section 707 of the John Warner National Defense 
Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2007 added section 1097c to Title 10. 
Section 1097c prohibits employers from offering financial or other 
incentives to certain TRICARE-eligible employees to not enroll in an 
employer-offered group-health plan. In other words, employers may no 
longer offer TRICARE supplemental insurance plans as part of an 
employee benefit package. Employers may, however, offer TRICARE 
supplemental insurance plans as part of an employee benefit package 
provided the plan is not paid for in whole or in part by the employer 
and is not endorsed by the employer. When such TRICARE supplemental 
plans are offered, the employer must properly document that they did 
not provide any payment for the benefit nor receive any direct or 
indirect consideration or compensation for offering the benefit; the 
employer's only involvement is providing the administrative support. 
That certification will be provided upon request to the Department of 
Defense.
    Affected Public: Business or other for profit; Not-for-profit 
institutions.
    Annual Burden Hours: 250.
    Number of Respondents: 1,500.

[[Page 80369]]

    Responses per Respondent: 1.
    Average Burden per Response: 10 minutes.
    Frequency: On occasion.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Summary of Information Collection

    Respondents are employers who make available non-contributory 
TRICARE supplemental insurance plan to their employees. This new 
paperwork requirement is consistent with section 707 of the John Warner 
National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2007 which added 
Section 1097c to Title 10. Per Section 1097c, employers may no longer 
offer TRICARE supplemental insurance plans as part of an employee 
benefit package. They may offer TRICARE supplemental insurance plans, 
however, provided the plan is not paid for in whole or in part by the 
employer and is not endorsed by the employer. When such TRICARE 
supplemental plans are offered, the employer must properly document 
that they did not provide any payment for the benefit nor receive any 
direct or indirect consideration or compensation for offering the 
benefit; the employer's only involvement is providing the 
administrative support. One certification must be completed per 
employer. It should be kept on file by the employer for as long as such 
plans are offered. The employer will provide the certification to the 
Department of Defense upon request.

    Dated: December 22, 2008.
Patricia L. Toppings,
OSD Federal Register Liaison Officer, Department of Defense.
[FR Doc. E8-31046 Filed 12-30-08; 8:45 am]

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