Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

Rader Clinic is part of the TRICARE East Region. Call Humana MilitaryAlabama, Arkansas, Connecticut, Delaware, the District of Columbia, Florida, Georgia, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa (Rock Island area), Kentucky, Louisiana, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Mississippi, Missouri (St. Louis area), New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, Ohio, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas (excluding El Paso area), Vermont, Virginia, West Virginia, and Wisconsin at 1-800-444-5445 and request to be assigned a Primary Care Manager at Rader U.S. Army Health Clinic. Make sure to set up an initial appointment with your new provider and request new referrals for any ongoing specialty care needs (ortho, physical therapy, sleep apnea etc.).

Call the TRICARE East Region Humana Military 1-800-444-5445 or visit TRICARE East Region to select a new Primary Care Manager or contact our Benefits Health Advisor for assistance.

Call Humana MilitaryAlabama, Arkansas, Connecticut, Delaware, the District of Columbia, Florida, Georgia, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa (Rock Island area), Kentucky, Louisiana, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Mississippi, Missouri (St. Louis area), New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, Ohio, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas (excluding El Paso area), Vermont, Virginia, West Virginia, and Wisconsin at 1-800-444-5445 or visit TRICARE East Region to transfer your care back to Rader Clinic. Welcome back to Military Medicine!

Your change in status (from active duty to retired) will cause an automatic change from TRICARE Prime coverage to TRICARE Standard coverage on your effective date of retirement for yourself and all family members enrolled in TRICARE Prime. As a retiree, TRICARE Prime is optional and you must voluntarily enroll and pay an enrollment fee set by the DoD. Learn about your TRICARE options as a retiree.

TRICARE Prime coverage for retirees and their eligible family members is available in certain locations within the U.S. known as Prime Service Areas (PSAs). It's best to contact the regional contractor for the region where you'll retire for information on TRICARE Prime availability. Please visit Prime Enrollment for contact information and Prime Service Area information.

If you plan on retiring within a 100 mile radius of Rader, you may be able to continue your Primary Care here. Visit or visit TRICARE East Region or contact Humana Military 1-800-444-5445 for enrollment assistance.

If you're retiring, you must re-enroll in TRICARE Prime and submit your TRICARE Prime enrollment fees to the appropriate regional contractor prior to your effective date of retirement to maintain continuous TRICARE prime coverage. Failure to re-enroll in TRICARE prime prior to the effective date of retirement causes an automatic disenrollment from TRICARE Prime for all eligible family members. If there's a break in TRICARE Prime coverage when transitioning from active duty to retirement you and all TRICARE-eligible family members previously covered under TRICARE Prime will be covered under TRICARE Standard/Extra until TRICARE Prime coverage resumes.

You'll remain enrolled in TRICARE Prime at your final duty station to ensure you remain fit for discharge. Learn about how to access care while on terminal leave.

You and your family members may qualify for transitional health care options after your separation date. Transitional Assistance Management Program (TAMP) eligibility is determined by the Services and documented in the Defense Enrollment Eligibility Reporting System. TAMP eligibility can be viewed online via MilConnect. You should check with your service personnel department for information or assistance with TAMP eligibility.

If you are a member of the National Guard or Reserve, you may qualify to purchase coverage under TRICARE Reserve Select prior to the end of your active duty or prior to the end of your TAMP coverage. For information on TRICARE Reserve Select in the North Region call 1-800-555-2605. If you do not qualify for TAMP coverage (or your TAMP coverage is coming to an end), or TRICARE Reserve Select coverage, you may qualify to purchase coverage through the Continued Health Care Benefit Program. For more information call 1-800-444-5445. Former active duty service members eligible for the Transition Assistance Management Program (TAMP) must complete a new TRICARE Prime enrollment application to continue their TRICARE Prime coverage.

For information on your health care options, please schedule a detailed benefit brief by contacting the our Beneficiary Counseling and Assistance at least 60 days prior to the month you turn age 65. Learn about TRICARE for Life or call 1-866-773-0404.

No.

No.

Call 911 immediately.

Call or visit your nearest urgent care facility if you have a non-life-threatening health issue. If you have a life-threatening health issue, call 911 immediately.

You can speak directly to a health professional using the Military Health System Nurse Advice Line to assist you with your health concern by calling 1-800-TRICARE (874-2273).

Yes. Our Pharmacy can now process electronic prescriptions from civilian providers for non-controlled medications. Hard copy prescriptions are still required for all controlled substances. If you would like to take advantage of this method of getting your prescriptions filled, let your provider know to select the site: DoD Ft Myer Pharmacy. It's important to note that electronic prescriptions will only be processed once the patient arrives at the pharmacy.

Yes. If you would like prescriptions transferred from another pharmacy to be filled at our pharmacy, we are happy to  help! Please print out this form TRANSFER FORM.PDF and bring it to the pharmacy filled out with as much information in Section A as you know. You can either drop this form in our Hard copy Prescription Drop-Off Box or pull a ticket number from the Q-Flow machine. Your prescriptions will normally be available for pick-up 2 business days (after 11:00 AM) after it's dropped off. If we have any issues, we'll call you and let you know.

Yes.  A hard copy prescription drop-off box is available at the pharmacy concierge desk in the front of the pharmacy. Please write the following on the back of each prescription being dropped off:

1. Full name
2. Date of Birth
3. Phone Number

**Your prescriptions will be available for pick up 2 business days after they are dropped off**

**Patients with hard copy prescriptions requiring same-day prescription processing should pull a ticket and have a seat**

A drug formulary is a list of prescription drugs, both generic and brand name, used by practitioners to identify drugs that offer the greatest overall value. Search the National Capital Region Joint Operations  Area (NCR-JOA) Unified Medication Formulary or search the TRICARE formulary.

A MedSafe medication collection receptacle is available inside Rader Clinic to drop off any expired or unwanted medications during normal pharmacy operating hours.

Start by looking beyond the topic of best sunscreen. Get back to the bigger picture, which is protecting yourself from the sun. Here are three main things to keep in mind:

• Avoid the sun during peak hours. Generally, this is between 10 a.m. and 4 p.m. — regardless of season. These are prime hours for exposure to skin-damaging ultraviolet (UV) radiation from the sun, even on overcast days.
• Wear protective clothing. This includes pants, shirts with long sleeves, and sunglasses. Top it off with a wide-brimmed hat. In addition, consider investing in special sun-protective clothing for golf, gardening, walking, running — even swimming.
• Use sunscreen. Liberal use of sunscreen is a key part of any program to protect you from the sun.

There are two types of UV light that can harm your skin — UVA and UVB. A broad-spectrum, or full-spectrum, sunscreen is designed to protect you from both.

UVA rays can penetrate deeply into your skin and suppress your immune system. This increases the risk of wrinkling and age spots. UVB rays can burn your skin. Too much exposure to both UVA and UVB rays raises your risk of skin tumors, including a form of cancer called squamous cell carcinoma. The best sunscreen offers protection from all UV light.

SPF stands for sun protection factor, which measures how well the sunscreen deflects UVB rays. Currently, there's no standard for measuring UVA protection.

Manufacturers calculate SPF based on how long it takes to sunburn skin that's been treated with the sunscreen as compared with skin that hasn't been treated with sunscreen. Theoretically, the best sunscreen has the highest SPF number. Many dermatologists recommend using a product with an SPF of 30 or more. However, no one really agrees on a "good" SPF number. A sunscreen with an SPF of 60 might be better than one with an SPF of 30, but not necessarily — and the SPF 60 product isn't likely to be twice as effective as the SPF 30 product.

To understand this, remember how sunscreen is typically used. It might not be applied thoroughly or thickly enough, and it might be perspired away or washed off while swimming. All this can make even the best sunscreen less effective than the SPF number on the bottle would lead you to believe.

You can use sunscreen that comes in any form: spray, lotion, cream, wax stick or powder. Your choice is a matter of personal preference and which area of the body you're covering. If you have dry skin, you might prefer a cream — especially for your face. A gel might work better for areas covered with hair, such as the scalp.

To ensure broad-spectrum protection, the American Academy of Dermatology (AAD) recommends sunscreens with any of the following ingredients:

• Avobenzone
• Cinoxate
• Ecamsule
• Menthyl anthranilate
• Octyl methoxycinnamate
• Octyl salicylate
• Oxybenzone
• Sulisobenzone

You might encounter warnings that sunscreens with oxybenzone can irritate your skin, especially if you're sensitive to skin care products. However, a recent analysis of 64 studies indicates that sunscreens with 1 to 6 percent oxybenzone don't pose a significant risk of skin sensitization or irritation for most people.

In addition to sunscreens based on the chemicals listed above, you can now choose from a number of mineral-based sunscreens — sometimes referred to as "inorganic." Their main ingredients are zinc oxide and titanium dioxide. Neither one of these seems to penetrate the skin, and sunscreens based on these ingredients appear to be safe as well as effective.

Try several different brands to see which works best for you. Brand matters less than how you use the product. In general, look for water-resistant, broad-spectrum coverage with an appropriate SPF — at least 15. Check the expiration date, and follow the directions on the label.

Even the best sunscreen isn't perfect. Many sunscreens especially fall down when it comes to UVA protection. In addition, sunscreen use alone isn't thought to prevent all skin cancers. Yet sunscreens are getting better, and using them is certainly better than using nothing at all.

Researchers don't understand why people develop melanoma — a serious form of skin cancer. There are several different types of melanoma, and not all types are equally linked to sun damage. Genetics plays a key role as well. Many factors are involved, which makes it hard to link sunscreen use with skin cancer.

If you have any risk factors for skin cancer — especially a family history of the disease — be sure to consult a dermatologist. Also remember this advice from the AAD: "Check your birthday suit on your birthday." If you notice any changes in your skin, such as growths or bleeding, consult a dermatologist right away. When detected early, most forms of skin cancer are quite treatable.

When you use sunscreen:

• Apply generous amounts of sunscreen to dry skin 30 minutes before you go outdoors.
• Use sunscreen on all skin surfaces that will be exposed to sun — especially your face, ears, hands, arms and lips. If you don't have much hair on your head, apply sunscreen to the top of your head or wear a hat.
• Coat your skin well and rub sunscreen in thoroughly.
• Reapply sunscreen every two hours — more often if you're perspiring.
• Reapply sunscreen immediately after swimming.
• Remember that sand, water and snow reflect sunlight and make it even more important to use sunscreen.
• Since UVA rays penetrate glass and clouds, use sunscreen even when it's cloudy or you're indoors but in rooms with lots of windows.

You can apply sunscreen to children as young as age 6 months. Keep younger children in the shade as much as possible.

Use sunscreen year-round, but don't let any product lull you into a false sense of security about exposure to the sun. A combination of shade, clothing, sunscreen and common sense is your best bet.