Bipartisan legislation reintroduced in the House and Senate last week seeks to extend TRICARE health coverage to National Guardsmen and Reservists, regardless of their civilian occupation.  S.164 and H.R.613 were introduced by Senator Steve Daines (R-MT) and Representative Trent Kelly (R-MS) respectively and now await consideration by their respective chambers’ Armed Services Committee.   The gist of their effort is this:  Under current law federal employees who serve in the National Guard or Armed Forces Reserve are prohibited from participating in TRICARE Reserve Select (TRS).  This disparity creates a financial incentive for transitioning service members to take their skillset and credentials away from the federal government and penalizes those who choose to serve their country in a civilian capacity.  It also limits the effectiveness of TRS as a recruiting tool within the public sector.  According to Senator Daines, “Our National Guardsmen deserve affordable healthcare options. Senseless laws shouldn’t stand in the way of that. It’s time we provide our Guardsmen and Reservists with the care they need, and this bill does just that.”  Please note that these bill listings are new; as of press time the text of the bills have not yet been posted.