HONOLULU, HI – Hawai‘i Medical Service Association today announced it will be supporting the contract awarded to TriWest Healthcare Alliance to administer the U.S. Department of Defense’s next generation TRICARE program, known as “T-5,” for its 26-state West Region territory. TRICARE is the uniformed services health care program for active duty service members, active duty family members, National Guard and Reserve members and their family members, retirees and retiree family members, survivors, and certain former spouses.

For the state of Hawaii, this is more than 200,000 additional people who serve our country and their family members that HMSA will be proud to serve in return.

TriWest previously held TRICARE contracts with the DoD for 17 years, beginning in 1996 through 2013, also in the Western United States. HMSA provided the network of medical professionals in the state of Hawaii to support that contract, and is looking forward to returning to this privileged work alongside TriWest to serve the TRICARE-eligible population. HMSA is proud to return to this work and provide a network of approximately 9,000 medical professionals who will step up for this noble population in its local communities.

“It is our privilege to join the team alongside TriWest that will be supporting the DoD in providing health care services to our nation’s heroes, expanding HMSA’s coverage to nearly a million lives here in Hawaii,” said HMSA President and Chief Executive Officer Mark M. Mugiishi, M.D., F.A.C.S. “We are honored to be part of the TriWest team that is focused on this critical work and look forward to doing our part to ensure our nation’s active duty service members, National Guard and reservists, retirees and their family members have access to quality health care here locally, through our network of medical professionals.”

HMSA has teamed with TriWest to help execute the next generation of TRICARE contracts and achieve excellence in network performance in support of DoD’s noble mission. Under the T-5 contract, the total geographic area of responsibility in the TRICARE West Region includes 26 states: Alaska, Arizona, Arkansas, California, Colorado, Hawaii, Idaho, Illinois, Iowa, Kansas, Louisiana, Minnesota, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, Nevada, New Mexico, North Dakota, Oklahoma, Oregon, South Dakota, Texas, Utah, Washington, Wisconsin and Wyoming.

TriWest also holds the federal contract with the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs to administer its Community Care Network for Veterans. Under both the VA and DoD contracts, TriWest will assist an active duty service member through his/her full cycle of access to community health care – through time of service, and then at the back end as the hero transitions to VA eligibility. HMSA will provide a local network for both contracts.

“At TriWest, it has been our privilege to serve the health care needs of the Veteran and military communities for nearly three decades. We are humbled to have the opportunity through this contract to return to our work alongside DoD, and continue our work alongside VA, through which to date the 740,000 medical professionals in the community have provided Veterans with 50 million total appointments, and to partner with HMSA to serve our nation’s heroes under the T-5 contract,” said David J. McIntyre, Jr., president and CEO of TriWest Healthcare Alliance.

To learn more about T-5 and TRICARE, visit www.tricare.mil.

About HMSA

Caring for the people of Hawaii is our promise and our privilege. Working together with employers, partners, and physicians and other health care providers, we promote well-being; develop reliable, affordable health plans; and support members with clear, thoughtful guidance.

HMSA is the most experienced health plan in the state, covering more than half of Hawaii’s population. As a recognized leader, we embrace our responsibility to strengthen the health and well-being of our community.

Headquartered on Oahu with centers and offices statewide to serve our members, HMSA is an independent licensee of the Blue Cross and Blue Shield Association.

About TriWest Healthcare Alliance

Headquartered in Phoenix, Ariz., TriWest Healthcare Alliance has been On a Mission to Serve® America's military families and Veterans since 1996 in delivering award-winning customer service and providing access to high-quality health care and wellness services, including behavioral health, crisis management and counseling.

The company's official website is: www.triwest.com.

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