§ 1095c. TRICARE program: facilitation of processing of claims
(a)
Reduction of Processing Time.—
(1)
With respect to claims for payment for medical care provided under the TRICARE program, the Secretary of Defense shall implement a system for processing of claims under which—
(b)
Requirement to Provide Start-Up Time For Certain Contractors.—
(1)
Except as provided in paragraph (3), the Secretary of Defense shall not require that a contractor described in paragraph (2) begin to provide managed care support pursuant to a contract to provide such support under the TRICARE program until at least nine months after the date of the award of the contract, but in no case later than one year after the date of such award.
(2)
A contractor under this paragraph is a contractor who is awarded a contract to provide managed care support under the TRICARE program—
(c)
Incentives for Electronic Processing.—
The Secretary of Defense shall require that new contracts for managed care support under the TRICARE program provide that the contractor be permitted to provide financial incentives to health care providers who file claims for payment electronically.
(d)
Correspondence to Medicare Claims Information Requirements.—
The Secretary of Defense, in consultation with the other administering Secretaries, shall limit the information required in support of claims for payment for health care items and services provided under the TRICARE program to that information that is identical to the information that would be required for claims for reimbursement for those items and services under title XVIII of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 1395 et seq.) except for that information, if any, that is uniquely required by the TRICARE program. The Secretary of Defense shall report to the Committee on Armed Services of the Senate and the Committee on Armed Services of the House of Representatives any information that is excepted under this provision, and the justification for that exception.