Q. I'm a terminally ill spouse of a military retiree. My husband served from 1985 to 2006; we married in 1995 but will probably file for divorce by summer 2016. I understand that Tricare coverage is maintained for children with terminal illnesses. Will I be able to keep my Tricare as well?

A. The rule for continued Tricare coverage for ex-spouses after divorce — the "20/20/20" rule — is one of the clearest and most unambiguous of all Tricare maxims. There are three criteria at work:

1. The service member must have served in uniform for at least 20 years.

2. The marriage must have lasted at least 20 years.

3. The time periods of the member's service and the marriage must have overlapped by at least 20 years.

If all three requirements are met, ex-spouses are entitled to lifetime Tricare coverage as long as they don't remarry; if that happens, Tricare coverage is lost and can't be restored later even if the subsequent union ends in death or divorce.

In your situation, your husband served more than 20 years and qualifies for military retirement, so you meet the first requirement.

If you don't divorce until next year, you will meet the second criteria.

But under the time references you provided, you will not come close to meeting the last requirement; the overlap between his service and your marriage is only 11 years. As such, your Tricare coverage will end upon your divorce.

Dependent children remain eligible for Tricare by virtue of their ongoing familial/biological relationship to the parent, which can't be legally severed like a marriage.

Dependent children normally are eligible for Tricare until age 21, or until age 23 if they're full-time college students. After that, they are eligible until age 26 for Tricare Young Adult, which requires enrollment and payment of monthly premiums.

Q. My National Guard husband recently returned from deployment. His 180-day coverage under the Transition Assistance Management Program is about to end and we're going on Tricare Reserve Select. I'm seven months pregnant and get regular checkups at a military hospital. What maternity coverage does TRS offer and will the baby be covered?

A. Tricare Reserve Select offers the same depth and breadth of maternity coverage as Tricare Standard. Your baby will be fully covered under TRS as well. The details are here: www.tricare.mil/CoveredServices/IsItCovered/MaternityCare.aspx

The one thing that may change when your husband is off TAMP is where you get your care; you may not be able to go to your local MTF and may have to seek care through local Tricare-authorized network providers. TRS beneficiaries are seen in military treatment facilities on a space-available basis, a decision made by the local MTF commander. Talk to the patient administration office at your MTF about whether they'll still see you on a space-available basis. If not, your regional Tricare contractor can help you find other Tricare-authorized health care providers.

Customer service contacts for all Tricare regions are at www.tricare.mil/ContactUs/CallUs.aspx.

Email tricarehelp@militarytimes.com. Include the word "Tricare" in the subject line.

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