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EFMP Families Need to Speak Up About Program Changes

By Tiffany Shedd

Health care has been a hot button issue for years now. But lately, you may have started to hear more about military-specific health care reforms.

This month, a DoD committee convened to discuss the EFMP program and ways to streamline this program. I know that sometimes it’s overwhelming to get through the day without worrying about these outside issues, but these discussions and articles about military health care and specifically EFMP reforms are important.

The changes will affect all of us. It’s important that we’re all educated about what is being proposed, and if we don’t like it, we need to let our voices be heard.

Here are some of the biggest proposed changes that may be coming our way in the not so distant future:

With the current EFMP system, the same form is used for all branches of service as a way of determining who should be enrolled in the EFMP program. That should mean that the data collected should result in the same conclusion across all branches of service, but there can be drastic differences in implementation and interpretation of this data causing some families to not qualify in a different location after they’ve already been admitted the program.

For example, if your child has an IEP in Maryland but you PCS to Texas, the receiving installation may not interpret your EFMP information the same as they did in Maryland and your child may be denied that same IEP in your new home. This is a battle that many EFMP families contend with more often that they would like.

The proposed reform would address this issue specifically. There would be specific guidelines that define the criteria for a family member to be included in the EFMP program. Along with the specific wording, EFMP across the branches would be streamlined into one umbrella program that is under the Office of the Under Secretary of Defense for Personnel and Readiness. This office would be required to submit an annual report to Congress addressing any gaps in service and proposals on how those gaps should be met.

While, this change sounds wonderful on paper, stringent guidelines could mean that exceptional cases (which are often not the exception in this program) could be harder to get into the program. These changes along with the proposed budget cuts and raising of fees for services that are being talked about in the general military health care give EFMP families a lot to be concerned about.

So, what can you do?

Be educated.

You don’t have to read every article that comes out, but you should have an idea about what is going on, because it affects ALL military families, whether you are EFMP or not. But where should you go to be educated? Well, most of you are probably already on Facebook, so start there.

There are numerous EFMP groups and pages on Facebook. Your installation may have their own specific EFMP page. Just search EFMP and the name of your installation and you will find it if it exists. There are also these other great resources: Military Special Needs Network and Military OneSource.

Want to do something more?

You can contact your representatives. Finding out who your representative is in Congress and the Senate is a simple Google search. It will give you their office address, email and phone number.

Let these people know who their decisions affect you. Make your voice heard in a way that they are willing to listen. If you go firing off an angry rant after you have been denied care for your EFMP family member that is nothing but incoherent ramblings, that isn’t going to be effective. Know what you’re talking about and say it clearly and concisely. I know being patient and calm is difficult when you see your family members suffering.

The next time you see another article about military health care, don’t just scroll past it. Take a look. You might see something that you like. You might see something you dislike.

But, if you don’t read it, you won’t know either way. You won’t know what’s being done that will affect you and your family as well as me my family. We are all in this together. We can have a loud voice. Let’s use it for good.

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