Updating Your Insurance Details: Navigating The Deers System

Keeping your Defense Enrollment Eligibility Reporting System (DEERS) data up-to-date is critical for accessing TRICARE benefits and healthcare. DEERS is a database of active-duty and retired service members, their families, and others eligible for TRICARE. It includes information such as military status, family status, contact details, and TRICARE coverage plans. To update your DEERS record, you can make changes online, by phone, fax, mail, or in person at an ID card office. It is important to note that any changes impacting your eligibility, such as marriage, divorce, or a change in health insurance, should be reported promptly to DEERS to ensure continuous coverage.

Update DEERS information after a Qualifying Life Event (QLE)

A Qualifying Life Event (QLE) is a change in your life that has an impact on your insurance coverage. QLEs are important when enrolling in or changing an insurance plan outside of the regular open enrollment period.

QLEs can be planned or unplanned and there are four main types: changes in your household, changes in your residence, loss of coverage, and other qualifying life events.

Some common examples of QLEs include:

• Retiring or separating from active duty
• Giving birth or adopting a child
• Becoming eligible for Medicare
• Gaining or losing other health insurance
• Marriage
• Divorce
• Death of a sponsor or family member

After a QLE, you must update your Defense Enrollment Eligibility Reporting System (DEERS) information. DEERS is a database of active duty and retired service members, their family members, and others who are eligible for TRICARE. It lists your military status, family status, contact information, TRICARE coverage plan, and more.

• Check your DEERS record online through the milConnect website, by phone, or in person at a local RAPIDS ID Card Office.
• Update your DEERS record. You can make some changes online, by phone, or by mail. If you need to add or remove family members, you must do this in person at your nearest ID card office. Take supporting documents with you, such as a birth certificate, marriage certificate, or divorce decree.
• Maintain your DEERS record by continuing to update your information promptly as soon as a change occurs.

It is important to keep your DEERS information up to date to avoid any breaks in your TRICARE coverage.

Verify DEERS information

To verify your DEERS information, you can contact your regional Tricare managed care support contractor, your local Tricare service center, or the nearest personnel office (ID card facility). You can also visit your personnel office or contact the Defense Manpower Data Center Support Office at 800-538-9552. They are open Monday through Friday, from 8:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m., and are closed on federal holidays. You can find the nearest location online.

It is important to keep your DEERS information up to date to ensure that you and your family can access your TRICARE benefits and healthcare. You should update your DEERS information whenever you experience a Qualifying Life Event (QLE) such as a change in your sponsorship status, getting married or divorced, or losing or gaining health insurance.

If you are active duty and re-enlist, separate, retire, or move, make sure your information gets updated in DEERS as soon as possible. If you do not, you and your family might experience a break in eligibility, which means a break in healthcare coverage.

If you have changed your legal name, you must update your name in DEERS to keep your eligibility for military benefits like TRICARE and any VA benefits you receive. Your information in DEERS must match what's on file with VA.

Update DEERS information by phone, fax, mail, or online

To update your DEERS (Defense Enrollment Eligibility Reporting System) information, you must first understand the importance of keeping your records current. Not doing so could delay your family's access to healthcare and cause issues with claims and prescriptions.

You should update your DEERS information whenever you experience a Qualifying Life Event (QLE) such as a change in your sponsorship status, getting married or divorced, losing or gaining health insurance, becoming eligible for Medicare, or the death of a sponsor or family member.

You can update your DEERS information by phone, fax, mail, or online. Here are the steps for each method:

By Phone:

Call the Defense Manpower Data Center (DMDC) at 1-800-538-9552. If you have hearing loss, you can call the TTY number: 1-866-363-2883. They are open Monday through Friday, 8:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m., and are closed on federal holidays. They will guide you through the process and let you know what documents are required.

By Fax:

Fax your updates to the DMDC at 1-800-336-4416. Ensure you include all the necessary documentation for your updates.

By Mail:

Send your updates via mail to the following address:

Defense Manpower Data Center Support Office

Attention: COA

400 Gigling Road

Seaside, CA 93955-6771

Again, be sure to include all the necessary documentation for your updates.

Online:

To update your contact information online, log in to the milConnect website and follow the instructions. You can also visit the Tricare website (www.tricare.mil/DEERS) to update your information.

Update DEERS information in-person at an ID card office

To update your DEERS information in person, you can visit your local ID card office. Before you go, it's important to check the website or call ahead to confirm the operating hours and procedures, as these may have changed due to COVID-19.

At the ID card office, you can make changes to your contact information, such as your phone number and email address. Keeping your contact details up to date is crucial, as it ensures you don't miss any important communications.

In addition to updating your contact information, you can also report any changes in your family status at the ID card office. This includes events such as marriage, birth, divorce, or death. Remember that each family member's eligibility record must be updated separately when changes occur.

If you are a sponsor, you are automatically registered in DEERS, but you must register any eligible family members. If both you and your spouse are service members with a child, you should choose one parent to be the child's sponsor.

Another important reason to update your DEERS information is to maintain your eligibility for benefits like TRICARE. For example, if you acquire or lose other health insurance, you should update DEERS. This includes becoming eligible for Medicare or having additional insurance through an employer.

Update DEERS information after a change in sponsorship status

The Defense Enrollment Eligibility Reporting System (DEERS) is a database of military sponsors, families, and others worldwide who are entitled to TRICARE and other benefits. Active-duty and retired service members are automatically registered in DEERS, but eligible family members must be registered by their sponsor.

A change in sponsorship status is considered a Qualifying Life Event (QLE) and requires you to update your DEERS record. This could be a change such as retiring or separating from active duty, which makes you ineligible for your existing coverage.

To update your DEERS record after a change in sponsorship status, you can choose from several options:

• Online: Log in to the MilConnect website.
• Phone: Call the Defense Manpower Data Center (DMDC) Support Office at 1-800-538-9552 (TTY/TDD: 1-866-363-2883).
• Fax: Fax updates to 1-800-336-4416 (Primary) or 1-502-335-9980 (Alternate).
• Mail: Send updates to the Defense Manpower Data Center Support Office, Attention: COA 400 Gigling Road, Seaside, CA 93955-6771.
• In person: Visit your personnel office or a local ID card office.

It is important to keep your DEERS information up to date to ensure that you and your family can access your TRICARE benefits and healthcare.

Frequently asked questions