Action Line: Unsatisfactory Medical Care for DoD civilians Published Sept. 2, 2011 By Col. John T. Quintas 48th Fighter Wing commander ROYAL AIR FORCE LAKENHEATH, England -- COMPLAINT: I am a Department of Defense civilian, and my concern is that before I arrived, I had sent in my child's physical which stated that he had ADHD. I went to the clinic on Lakenheath and told them that my son's father is active duty, however he is not stationed here with us. I was told that my son could only be seen on a "space available" basis because he is not command sponsored under his father but under myself. I've been trying to fight this battle since I arrived because my son is covered under TRICARE and I'm a 90 percent disabled veteran. I understand that his father is not here, but if my son needs to be seen then I believe he should be, without me having to enroll him in NHS or without him being a "pay" customer. I've called a surgery in Mildenhall and they asked me why he couldn't be seen on base. When I explained it to them, you could tell that they were frowning on this. The NHS is a system for the British people and not for members of DoD per se. I think that it looks bad for the base when DoD members have to go off base and apply for medical care with them instead of on base. I feel as though I have done my time (11 ½ years) in the military and am now working for the DoD, so my family should be allowed to be seen on base on more than a "space available" basis. This concern may fall on deaf ears, but it is a concern for me because I am here with my children and thought that we would be taken care of a little bit better, medically, than we are currently, especially since my child is covered under TRICARE. RESPONSE: Thank you for voicing your concern regarding your experience at the 48th Medical Group. First, I'd like to thank you for your service to our nation, both while on active duty and as a Department of Defense (DoD) civilian. We take the medical needs of our beneficiaries seriously and make every attempt to ensure they're cared for. Unfortunately, because of your child's situation, he's eligible only for space-available care at the 48th Medical Group. According to the Air Force Instruction governing TRICARE, only active duty service members and their command-sponsored family members living together in non-remote overseas locations are eligible for TRICARE Prime Overseas. Even though your child is the dependent of an active-duty service member, he doesn't qualify for TRICARE Prime Overseas coverage, but rather TRICARE Standard as he's not living with his active duty sponsor. The 48th Medical Group makes every effort to see our space-available patients whenever possible. There are times, however, when demand exceeds the number of available appointments. When this happens, we're required to accommodate our TRICARE Prime patients before we can open appointments to our TRICARE Standard beneficiaries. Fortunately, your child is eligible to receive care from host-nation providers through the National Health Service (NHS). This is a covered benefit for DoD civilians and US contractors under the Status of Forces Agreement. Every effort has been made to address your concerns, but if you have any additional questions please contact our patient advocate, SSgt Quinshayan Richardson at 226-8119.