TAMP: Your 180-Day Healthcare Bridge After Military Service

The day you separate, your active-duty TRICARE Prime coverage ends. For many separating service members, this transition happens so quickly that healthcare falls through the cracks — especially for families who've never paid a health insurance premium in their careers.

TAMP exists to bridge that gap. Here's what it covers, who it applies to, and how to plan the handoff before the clock runs out.

This is an educational overview. Your specific TAMP eligibility is determined by your separation circumstances. Contact your unit's S1/HR office or TRICARE directly to confirm eligibility and enrollment options for your situation.

What is TAMP?

TAMP provides 180 days of premium-free TRICARE coverage for qualifying members and eligible family members. During TAMP, you may be eligible for plan options such as TRICARE Prime (where available), TRICARE Select, US Family Health Plan, or overseas TRICARE options depending on your location.

The 180-day window gives separating members time to find new employment and transition to a civilian healthcare plan, rather than facing an immediate coverage cliff the day after separation.

Who qualifies for TAMP?

TAMP eligibility is determined by your service and reflected in DEERS. Common qualifying categories include:

• Involuntary separation under honorable conditions (including RIF, force-shaping, and selected-out under QMP)
• Certain voluntary separation incentive situations (SSB, VSI)
• Some Reserve Component activations ending after qualifying active-duty periods
• Stop-loss or contingency-related separations
• Sole survivorship discharge
• Cases where a member separates from regular active duty and immediately joins the Selected Reserve

Routine voluntary end-of-contract separation usually does not qualify by itself. Administrative separations for cause typically do not qualify. Check your eligibility in DEERS or with your Beneficiary Counseling and Assistance Coordinator (BCAC).

What does TAMP coverage include?

During TAMP, qualifying members can access TRICARE plan options (Prime, Select, or others based on location) at no enrollment premium:

• Premiums: $0 enrollment fee during the TAMP period
• Plan availability: TRICARE Prime where available at an MTF, TRICARE Select elsewhere in CONUS
• Network civilian care: Accessible through your selected plan's network with standard cost-shares
• Pharmacy: Covered under TRICARE pharmacy benefits
• Dependents: All eligible family members enrolled in DEERS at separation are covered

For families who had $0-cost active-duty TRICARE Prime, TAMP provides a continued no-premium option — but plan availability depends on where you live after separation.

Note on terminal leave: While you are on terminal leave, you generally remain under active-duty TRICARE coverage. TAMP begins after your official separation date, if you qualify — not during terminal leave.

How the 180-day clock works

Your 180-day TAMP clock starts when regular TRICARE eligibility ends after separation, if you qualify. Confirm your exact TAMP end date in DEERS or milConnect — don't assume the calendar math is exact. Plan replacement coverage to start no later than the day after TAMP ends.

There is no extension. On the day TAMP ends, you and your family are uninsured unless you've already enrolled in replacement coverage.

Your target: have your new coverage effective on or before Day 181 — which means enrollment must happen before that, often weeks before.

Employer-sponsored plans have specific enrollment windows tied to start dates and open enrollment periods. ACA marketplace plans require enrollment by the 15th of the month for coverage starting the 1st of the following month. TRICARE Reserve Select requires active Reserve or Guard membership. These timelines mean starting the process weeks before TAMP ends, not the final week.

What are your options after TAMP ends?

Option 1: Employer-sponsored health insurance

If you've found civilian employment with employer healthcare, this is typically the path TAMP is designed to bridge to. Military separation (or end of TAMP) is a qualifying life event that lets you enroll outside standard open enrollment windows at most employers.

Enroll as soon as your employment start date is confirmed — don't wait until Day 175.

Option 2: TRICARE Reserve Select (TRS)

If you're joining the National Guard or Reserves after separation, TRICARE Reserve Select is available as affordable continuation coverage. 2026 rates: $57.88/month for the member alone, $286.66/month for family.

TRS requires active membership in a Selected Reserve unit and must be enrolled through TRICARE — it's not automatic when you join a Reserve unit. If you plan to use TRS after TAMP, timing matters: TRICARE allows TRS enrollment after loss of other TRICARE coverage, but the form must generally be received within 90 days to avoid a coverage gap.

Option 3: ACA Marketplace coverage

Loss of TRICARE/TAMP coverage may qualify you for a Marketplace Special Enrollment Period based on loss of qualifying health coverage. If TAMP is your bridge coverage, the relevant enrollment window is generally tied to when TAMP ends, not your original separation date. You may be able to shop during the 60 days before TAMP coverage ends to avoid a gap. Check Healthcare.gov or your state exchange for your exact enrollment window and documentation rules.

Costs vary substantially by location, plan type, and family size. For many military families, marketplace plans at comparable coverage levels will cost significantly more than TAMP — often $800–$2,000+/month in premiums for a family. The Healthcare Cost Comparison calculator can help you estimate what coverage will actually cost in your area.

Option 4: VA healthcare

Veterans with service-connected conditions are eligible for VA healthcare, providing free or low-cost care at VA facilities for service-connected conditions. Priority access is determined by disability rating.

VA healthcare generally covers the veteran only — not spouse or children. Dependents may qualify for CHAMPVA only in specific cases, such as when a veteran is rated permanently and totally disabled, and only if they are not eligible for TRICARE. For the veteran's own healthcare, VA is often a significant resource, especially with a disability rating.

If you haven't yet filed a VA disability claim, see File for VA Disability Before You Separate — filing on active duty through the Benefits Delivery at Discharge (BDD) program maximizes your chances of continuity.

Option 5: Continued Health Care Benefit Program (CHCBP)

CHCBP is a premium-based continuation coverage option available after TRICARE eligibility ends, including after TAMP. Think of it as the military version of COBRA. It provides temporary coverage but is expensive — approximately $2,103/quarter for individual or $5,339/quarter for family coverage. Compare it carefully against employer coverage, TRICARE Reserve Select, VA healthcare, and Marketplace options before relying on it as more than a short-term bridge.

Option 6: COBRA from a previous employer

If you had civilian employer coverage at some point before entering service, COBRA continuation may be available. This applies to relatively few career service members, but worth checking if you had a gap before service.

The healthcare handoff checklist

Don't wait until the final weeks of TAMP to figure out your next coverage. Healthcare decisions require lead time.

30–60 days before TAMP ends:

• Confirm your TAMP end date in DEERS or milConnect
• Research employer plan options if you have a job offer pending
• Get VA disability filing submitted if you have service-connected conditions
• Check TRICARE Reserve Select eligibility if joining Guard or Reserve
• Pull marketplace plan quotes if no employer coverage is available

Before TAMP ends:

• Enroll in your replacement plan with an effective date that meets or precedes Day 181
• Transfer medical records and prescription history
• Schedule any pending specialist appointments, procedures, or prescriptions while TAMP is still active

The scenario that creates the most problems: assuming coverage will work itself out, then finding on Day 175 that enrollment windows have closed or require two more weeks to take effect. An uninsured gap means you're personally liable for any medical costs during that period.

What healthcare costs after TAMP

For families used to $0/month active-duty TRICARE Prime, the cost adjustment is significant:

These ranges vary substantially by location and family size. The point is the order of magnitude: the transition from $0/month to $1,000–$1,500/month or more is a real budget line item, not a footnote.

Account for healthcare replacement costs before deciding whether a civilian salary offer is competitive with what you had. The Total Compensation Calculator can help you see what your active-duty package was worth — including the healthcare component — as a baseline for comparison.

The bottom line

TAMP is a bridge, not a plan. 180 days is enough time to find and enroll in replacement coverage — but only if you start the process before the final weeks.

If you qualify for TAMP, confirm eligibility immediately after receiving separation orders. Verify your exact TAMP end date in DEERS or milConnect. Work backward from that date to identify when enrollment in your replacement plan needs to happen. Verify that your family members are enrolled in DEERS so they're included.

Healthcare is consistently the most financially impactful and least-planned piece of any military-to-civilian transition. The 180 days are an asset — use them.

For a complete transition financial checklist covering income replacement, VA benefits, TSP decisions, and all benefit deadlines, see the Military Transition Financial Roadmap.

Eligibility for TAMP is determined by your specific separation circumstances, discharge characterization, and separation reason codes. This article provides a general educational overview. Contact your installation's S1, finance office, or TRICARE (1-844-866-PLAN) to confirm your specific eligibility and enrollment process.