“Beneficiaries of the TRICARE military health system in the Eastern U.S. were surprised by eye-popping charges on their credit cards and bank accounts Thursday due to an apparent computer glitch that charged them 100 times what their monthly premiums should have been.”
“The problem appeared to have originated with a third-party payment processor used by Humana Military, the contractor that serves TRICARE beneficiaries in all states east of the Mississippi River, plus Louisiana, Arkansas, Oklahoma and most of Texas. In effect, the system moved premium amounts two decimal places to the right — turning, for example, what should have been a $50 monthly charge into $5,000.”
“The Defense Health Agency said the payment processor was working to reverse the errant charges, and that people who were overbilled should see credits to their original payment methods within 48 hours. DHA referred other questions, including how many beneficiaries were affected, to Humana.”
“In an emailed response to queries from Federal News Network, Humana did not answer that question, but said it ‘sincerely regrets’ the errors…”
“DHA said the glitch likely would have impacted anyone in the TRICARE East region who pays for their coverage via monthly premiums. That would include most military retirees and some members of the National Guard and Reserve…” Read the full article here.
Source: Payment glitch hits TRICARE beneficiaries with four-figure monthly premiums – By Jared Serbu, December 5, 2019. Federal News Network.
