Tricare Overseas Now Has Direct Deposit for Reimbursements

[Pib]

Tricare Overseas now has Direct Deposit for claim reimbursements. You can now have your reimbursements directly deposited via "ACH" into your bank account....no need to wait for the reimbursement check to show-up in the mail and then cash/deposit it. Whether you log-on to Tricare Overseas directly via the Tricare Overseas website or via MyAccess makes no difference. We log-on via MyAccess and the wife and I setup our Direct Deposit last week to our U.S. bank...easy and fast to do...takes about a week for the Direct Deposit to go active. A partial quote from the Tricare Overseas website after you log-on follows:

Automated direct deposit is now available! Beneficiaries registered on the secure claims portal at http://www.tricare-overseas.com can sign up to receive payment for their TOP Claims via direct deposit. Once signed up, you will receive payments in USD currency to your U.S. bank account through an Automated Clearing House (ACH). It's quick, safe and convenient. Visit the secure claims portal today to sign up! Contact your TOP Regional Call Center and press option #2 if you have questions or need assistance.

Now after logging-on finding the link to setup the Direct Deposit is kinda hard to find...it's buried under the Family View, Grant Access to My Account link. I actually called Tricare to ask them where the setup link was....the rep answered my question and said they have got a lot of calls about "where is the setup link" and they are working to make it more obvious/easy to find. Once you reach the Grant Access webpage over in the far right you'll see a column heading titled "Direct Deposit." Click on Direct Deposit and set it up...it's easy...you only need to enter your bank account routing and account number and email address....then wait about one week for it to automatically setup. To setup Direct Deposit you also have to accept electronic delivery Explanation of Benefits...they will not be mailed to you anymore...you must view/download them online.

Now since the reimbursement occurs via "ACH" this mean you'll need a U.S. bank account or I guess you could use your Bangkok Bank account via the Bangkok Bank New York branch routing number like many people do for their pension payments. Bangkok Bank is the only Thai bank with ACH receiving capability. The wife and I didn't use our Bangkok Bank account but a U.S. bank account. But if using your Bangkok Bank account remember you'll have those two Bangkok Bank fees of 0.25% (Bt200 min, Bt500 max) at your in-Thailand Bangkok Bank branch and the NY branch sliding scale fee of usually $5 or $10 depending on the amount transferring through them just like for other payments following thru them....this means your reimbursement check will show up a little lite (minus the Bangkok Bank fees).

I know many Tricare Overseas beneficiaries probably use Deposit at Home type methods with your U.S. bank to electronically cash your papercheck by scanning it in, but even if you do use that method (like I do), Direct Deposit is faster/easier....no waiting for the check to hopefully arrive via mail which can add weeks to getting your reimbursement.

[RKASA]

Thank you - I have been waiting for an email response to find that link - never considered it would hide in there. Family View - got it This is great because my bank did not allow scanning from overseas - I had to mail them all the way back adding yet another few weeks to the whole thing.

Thanks

edit: deed is done

Edited March 13, 2015 by RKASA

[bill1369]

And it works great!! BTW: If you need help finding where to apply on Tricare website (it's kinda hidden), just write a note to Overseas help and they'll direct where and how to apply.

[Pib]

The new direct deposit does seem to work. I filed a claim recently online after I had setup the direct deposit info and I knew I would be getting some reimbursement. Got an direct deposit notice/email yesterday (redacted version below) from Tricare saying a direct deposit had been made to financial institution. Now I checked my financial institution and it hasn't arrived yet (it is the weekend) but I'm sure it will early this coming week during the first few business days of the week. I also logged onto my account and there was my EOB.

Had also submitted online same day a claim for my wife whose direct deposit was setup also but since we hadn't met her annual deductible yet I knew there would be no reimbursement coming for this claim...so this claim was really just to get logged into the Tricare system towards meeting the deductible so future claims will start getting reimbursed X-amount.. Yesterday she also got an email saying her claim had been processed and she could log on and see the EOB. Never had got one of these emails before saying a claim had completed its processing. Logged onto her account and there was the EOB.

This is the first time in filing Tricare claims for years that we have got email notices that a claim had finished processing. Before you just had to watch for the EOB to appear online and/or show up in the mail possibly with a check included. In my case since I got a reimbursement I only got one email notice of a direct deposit being accomplished without it saying a EOB was now available like the wife got...but of course if a reimbursement occurred then of course a EOB has processed. And in the wife's case since no reimbursement occurred she of course didn't get a direct deposit notice but an email saying an EOB had finished processing. Before we never got these type of emails that a claim/reimbursement had occurred....the only time we got an email is when the claim was initially submitted/uploaded to Tricare (an automated response)....and then another form letter type email signed by a human when a Tricare human initially opened the submitted claim to read it and then forward it to the claims department for processing which takes another couple of weeks.

Now I don't know if just because we have setup direct deposit within the last month has caused these additional notices/emails to occur when the claim processing has finished/direct deposit made or maybe Tricare has just instituted these additional notices whether you mail-in your claim or submit online. But it's sure nice to get these additional notices that the claim has finished processing and/or a direct deposit is heading electronically to your bank. No more waiting on reimbursement checks showing up in the mail and then having to cash them...but for me cashing them was no biggie as I could deposit them to one of my U.S. bank accounts by scanning/uploading.

However, I will say that even my banks who allow scanning/uploading of checks for deposit have limits on the size of the checks they will accept that way...around $5,000 I think (maybe less)...so god forbid when that day possibly comes that I do have a BIG reimbursement for a major medical claim I will not need to worry about getting a high value paper check rec'd in the mail and then cashed from Thailand.

[Pib]

Got an email notice from my bank today/Monday the reimbursement direct deposit posted to my account. Yes, so much faster and easier than a paper check. Glad Tricare finally entered the 21st century regarding methods of payment/reimbursement.

[lopburi3]

Indeed direct deposit is very handy as both faster and less chance of check missing in the mail. Have had this system for a few years now with Blue Shield/Blue Cross and it can take up to a week for them to actually make the ACH transfer - but sometimes it is within a day or so of positing on internet of claim being processed. In any case always faster than checks and have never had any missing (and have had a lot of claims - but they did fall-back to check writing last year for awhile when having issues with contracted processing firm).

[joealx]

Indeed direct deposit is very handy as both faster and less chance of check missing in the mail. Have had this system for a few years now with Blue Shield/Blue Cross and it can take up to a week for them to actually make the ACH transfer - but sometimes it is within a day or so of positing on internet of claim being processed. In any case always faster than checks and have never had any missing (and have had a lot of claims - but they did fall-back to check writing last year for awhile when having issues with contracted processing firm).

The drug claims are not set up for ACH yet (for BC/BS).

[lopburi3]

If you buy your drugs from hospital (BC/BS) during medical visits they are submitted as normal medical bill and payment is normal ACH if you request on form.

[Pib]

Just as FYI if signed up for Direct Deposit (DD) you would have noticed by now that Tricare sends you an email when the DD is released to your bank...and when you get that email your processed claim EOB is available in your Tricare/WPS/SOS account for your review to determine if they processed it right, allowed everything, etc.

But the middle of last week I noticed two of the wife's claims had finalized in early Oct/last week...EOBs in her account...the EOBs showed a payment due but she hadn't got emails from Tricare saying the DD payment had been been released. Checked her account to confirm the DD was still setup and it was. Waited around 5 days...still no payment release...called Tricare Monday night Thailand time. The Tricare rep said due to the fiscal year change on 1 Oct they still hadn't gotten authority from the govt to make payments....expect it was also impacted by Congress and the President doing their normal fighting over the budget for the next fiscal year. Anyway the Tricare rep was not sure when they would get funding...she just hoped it would be soon since many people were calling about, "Where's my payment?"

Come Wednesday night (last night) I decided to call again...see if the story had changed...talked to a different rep...the rep said yes two completed claims were pending DD payment...would pay once they got money...didn't know when. But this evening we got 3 DD emails...two for the wife's claims talked about above and anther one for a claim of mine which finished processing today.. So, I guess Tricare has just got their FY16 money...or at least some of it.

So, just in case you submitted some claims recently (like early/mid Sep), noticed they had recently finalized with a payment due, and was wondering where the DD payment was...well, it was due to fiscal year switch-over and late receipt of FY16 funding. But since they just paid via DD for three claims the wife and I had in the system, the payment spicket is apparently now turned on again.