VOL 42 No. 1 January 2015 GREATER CINCINNATI CHAPTER MILITARY OFFICERS ASSOCIATION OF AMERICA AN AFFILIATE OF THE MILITARY OFFICERS ASSOCIATION OF AMERICA Renew your dues – please see page 5! Speaker: Tom Lodge, Chief Marketing Officer for Military Systems Operations for GE WHERE: Manor House Restaurant 600 Maple Trace Dr., Springdale, OH (Gathering Room) WHEN: Friday, 27 Feb 2015 TIME: 11:30 AM – Social Time 12:00 PM – Brunch ……… Program follows Luncheon It is already another year and our first membership meeting is planned, with many more to come. Come meet the new Board members and be heard. Our speaker for our first meeting is Tom Lodge, who is the Chief Marketing Officer for Military Systems Operations at GE. He is responsible for leading all marketing activities related to Defense industry environment analysis, competitive intelligence, product marketing, strategic planning, and market communications messaging for GE’s military engine product line. Tom joined GE Aviation in 2008. Before GE, he was with Honeywell Aerospace, where he was Product Marketing Manager for new propulsion engines for business aviation aircraft. Prior to joining Honeywell in 1998, Tom worked for McDonnell Douglas as a design engineer on the MD -11 transport and MD900 Explorer helicopter programs. While working he also was an instructor at Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University teaching evening undergraduate marketing and finance courses and volunteered as the Arizona Wing Aerospace Education Officer with the USAF Auxiliary Civil Air Patrol. Tom is a graduate of the University of Arizona, with a bachelor’s in aerospace engineering and The Kellogg School of Management at Northwestern University, with a master’s in business administration with majors in marketing and finance. He enjoys traveling, bicycling, and flying radio controlled model aircraft. Tom is also a FAA licensed private pilot. LUNCH RESERVATION: Friday, 27 Feb 2015—Manor House Restaurant—Springdale, OH. Name: __________________________ Rank & Service: _______________ Spouse/Guests: _______ (ARE YOU A NEW MEMBER, OR FIRST TIME OUT? _____ ) Entrée choices: Lunch BUFFET $12.00 (Menu changes daily but always includes a selection of homemade soups, 3 salad selections, three entrees, two vegetable dishes and a side dish and includes Manor House bread pudding for dessert ) Total Reservations _________ = Total $________ Make Checks payable to GREATER CINCINNATI CHAPTER/MOAA and mail to LTC PAUL FELLINGER, 5493 Delhi Rd., Cincinnati, OH 45238-5139, (Phone (513) 451-9881) or email: [email protected]. Please make reserva- tions NLT than 25 Feb. No cancellations after that date. 2015 CHAPTER OFFICERS AND BOARD PURPOSES OF THE GREATER CINCINNATI (phone #’s are area code 513 unless noted) MOAA CHAPTER Executive Committee President LTC Al Brauer, USA 677-8320 The purposes of Military Officers Association of America as Immed PP BG Tom O’Brien, USA 421-0118 stated by national are printed on the outside of each 1st VP CAPT Steve Drefahl, USNR 752-4097 Newsletter. The corresponding purposes of our Chapter 2nd VP CAPT Mike Glaser 675-0895 as stated in our BYLAWS, Article II are: Secretary CAPT Alan Echt, PHS 573-0315 Treasurer LTC Paul Fellinger, USAR 451-9881 (a) To promote the purposes and objectives of the Chaplain Rev Joseph L Boone, USA 853-2051 Military Officers Association of America Legislative Ofc BG Tom O’Brien, USA 421-0118 (b) To foster fraternal relations among retired, active Natl Bd RADM Larry Hereth, USCG 812 537-2968 and former officers of the uniformed services. Past Natl Bd MAJ Isaac Mincy , USAF 542-6145 (c) To protect the rights and interests of personnel of the Aux Liaison MAJ Diana Bloemer, USAF 729-2960 uniformed services and their dependents and survivors. (d) To provide useful services for members and their State Council dependents and survivors. 1st VP CWO3 Kym Mader, USN 759-0852 (e) To serve the community and the nation. Chaplin Rev Joseph L Boone, USA 853-2051 Delegate CAPT Alan Echt, PHS 573-0315 Your officers and Board members welcome your comments Alt Delegate MAJ Ed Knox, USAF 674-7755 and suggestions on steps that may be taken to strengthen our Chapter and its benefits to all members. Committees Programs Vacant Membership CDR Charlie Bell, USCG 859 240-1943 LOCAL Chapter: R.O.T.C. LTC Al Brauer, USA 677-8320 CinMoaa News is published to arrive at your home 10 days Reserve/NG CAPT Steve Drefahl, USNR 752-4097 before each meeting. Articles and corrections for the News Historian LCOL Dick Probst, USAF 703-0754 must be in the hands of editor 4 weeks before each meeting Sympathy/ CAPT Jack Meyer, USN 489-7361 date. – Mail to CinMoaa News, 8099 Pepper Pike, West Personal Affairs Chester, OH 45069. Or E-mail [email protected]. TOPS LtCol Brad Hamant, USAF 439-3140 VA Brick Liaison BM2 Ben Staubach, USN 919-3659 CinMoaaNews/ CWO3 Kym Mader, USN 759-0852 For MOAA National information: Public Affairs Visit the MOAA Web Site - INTERNET ADDRESS HTTP://www.moaa.org Service Representatives Army COL Robert Greene, USA 859 689-4321 TAPS Navy/CG CAPT Jack Meyer, USN 489-7361 USPHS CAPT Alan Echt, PHS 573-0315 If you know a member of MOAA who has past away, please let us Air Force MAJ Ed Knox, USAF 674-7755 know so we may pass it on. Marine Corps Vacant MEETINGS - Mark your Calendars NOW! Watch www.cincymoaa.org for updates. BOARD MEETINGS 2nd Friday of each month, 1230 - American Red Cross Building 2111 Dana Ave., Cincinnati, OH Conference Call in is available. Contact a board member for more details. Spouses and guests are welcome at all meetings. MEMBER MEETINGS Future Member Meetings to include topics on Local Law Enforcement, PHS Ebola responders, & LTC Kari Keep watching for more details 2 Health Care Coverage and the ACA: Just Check the Box You’ve seen the commercials on TV and heard the serious voice on the radio telling you how difficult this tax season may be because of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (ACA). Don’t believe the hype; you can meet the health care coverage reporting requirement as easily as checking a box on your Form 1040, 1040A or 1040EZ. Effective January 1, 2014, the ACA required most Americans, including TRICARE beneficiaries and DoD employees, have minimum essential health care coverage (MEC), or pay a tax penalty for each month that you and the other individuals listed on your tax form did not have coverage during 2014. The good news is if you, and your dependents, are entitled to TRICARE or purchased TRICARE or Federal Employee Health Benefit (FEHB) Plan coverage, all you have to do to is “self-attest” you had coverage on your 2014 tax return. The IRS has released clarifying information in publication 5187, “Health Care Law: What’s New for Individuals & Families.” This publication provides information about some of the tax requirements of the ACA. Other ACA-related publications and tax forms are available at www.irs.gov/ACA. Military beneficiaries who are only eligible for space available care in military clinics or hospitals (examples are parents and parents-in-law or former members seeking care for line-of-duty conditions) do not have TRICARE coverage and would normally be subject to the tax penalty if they do not have MEC from a non-DoD source. However, those beneficiaries who are only eligible for “Space Available” care have received a special exemption from the tax penalty for tax year 2014. These beneficiaries should document their status on Form 8695, Health Coverage Exemptions, and file it with their federal tax returns. For those who do not have TRICARE or FEHB coverage or lose DoD sponsored coverage, you're encouraged to explore other health care options through the Health Insurance Marketplace. Open season begins November 15 and runs through February 15, 2015. Certificates of Creditable Coverage No Longer Needed for Beneficiaries Losing TRICARE Coverage TRICARE will no longer send beneficiaries certificates of creditable coverage when they lose TRICARE eligibility. These certificates are no longer needed when beneficiaries transition off TRICARE. Beneficiaries will instead receive notice that their TRICARE coverage is ending. The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (ACA) passed by Congress in 2011 changes the law so that insurers cannot deny you coverage based on preexisting conditions. Before this law went into effect, when you switched health plans, you had to prove to your new plan that you had coverage before joining them; otherwise they might not cover you for prior illnesses or injuries you had. With this change in the law, you don’t need a certificate to prove you had coverage. TRICARE beneficiaries can lose their coverage for several reasons. Some of the most common include separating from active duty, aging out or choosing to stop paying for a premium based TRICARE plan. When beneficiaries receive notice that their coverage is ending, it will include relevant information about other TRICARE options like the Transitional Assistance Management Program (TAMP) and ways for beneficiaries to explore their options on the state ACA health exchanges. All TRICARE health plans exceed the ACA requirement that health coverage must offer a level of minimal essential coverage. If you are looking for other health insurance, you're encouraged to explore your options through the Market Place at www.healthcare.gov. The current open season runs from November 15 through February 15, 2015. Beneficiaries eligible to purchase TRICARE premium based plans (TRICARE Retired Reserve, TRICARE Reserve Select, TRICARE Young Adult, and the Continuing Health Care Plan Benefit) who choose not to purchase this coverage, may qualify for premium assistance or state Medicaid based on income, family size, and state of residence. They should go to www.healthcare.gov or contact their state marketplace for assistance.