MOAA’s TRICARE Toolkit provides insight and tips for navigating your TRICARE benefits. Have a question or suggestion for an upcoming column? Email beninfo@moaa.org. Read other TRICARE Toolkit columns at MOAA.org/tricaretoolkit.

TRICARE beneficiaries track their annual medical expenses by accessing their explanation of benefits (EOB). The EOB statement is not a bill; it delineates an itemized summary action TRICARE has taken on claims filed by your provider or past medication orders.

Active-duty families and retirees who only use military treatment facilities (MTFs) have probably never encountered an EOB because MTF care and pharmacy services are provided without a co-payment; no EOB is generated.

Many TRICARE network providers seek co-payments at the time the patient is seen. However, the Defense Health Agency recommends anytime you see your doctor, dentist, or pharmacist or receive care from a hospital, you should try to access your EOB before receiving the bill — or after paying your co-payment — to verify the amount charged is in line with your plan’s benefits.

[RELATED: MOAA's 2022-23 TRICARE Guide]

It is important to understand the contents of your EOB and to read through it carefully.

EOBs typically contain the following information:

• The date you received a medical treatment or service.
• The amount billed by the provider.
• The amount covered by TRICARE, Medicare, or other health insurance, if applicable.
• Any balance you owe the provider.
• How much of the cost has been credited to your annual deductible and catastrophic cap.

You can access your medical EOB through a secure portal on the website of your specific TRICARE contractor.

What should you look for on your medical EOB?

• Did you receive the medical services listed on the EOB?
• Are you being billed more than once for the same service?
• How much of your care is covered, and what are you expected to pay?
• Was your claim accepted or denied?

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Your pharmacy EOB is similar to, but not exactly the same as, your medical EOB. It is a summarized statement of processed pharmacy claims. Again, no EOB is generated from medications dispensed from an MTF pharmacy.

To access pharmacy EOBs, visit Militaryrx.express-scripts.com. If you have signed up to receive pharmacy EOBs online, you’ll get an email once each month that lets you know when an updated EOB is available.