Can I Have TRICARE and Employer Insurance? (2026 Guide)
*TRICARE.com is an independent reference site and is not the official TRICARE program or a government agency. For official policy and enrollment, visit TRICARE.mil.*
## Quick answer Yes, you can have both TRICARE and employer-sponsored insurance. This is known as having **Other Health Insurance (OHI)**; in this scenario, your employer’s plan is the primary payer, and TRICARE acts as the secondary payer to cover remaining costs like copayments or deductibles.
Details
When you have both TRICARE and a private employer plan, federal law dictates the "Order of Precedence." TRICARE is almost always the secondary payer to all other health insurance (except for Medicaid, TRICARE supplements, and the Indian Health Service).
### How Billing Works 1. **Primary Coverage:** You must provide your employer-sponsored insurance information to your doctor. They bill your employer's plan first. 2. **Secondary Coverage:** After the employer plan pays its share, the doctor bills TRICARE for the remaining balance. 3. **Coordination of Benefits:** TRICARE typically pays the lower of: * The amount it would have paid if it were your only insurance. * The member's remaining out-of-pocket responsibility after the primary insurance paid.
### Specific Plan Interactions * **TRICARE Select:** This is the most common pair with employer insurance. The flexibility of Select allows you to see any TRICARE-authorized provider, making it easier to find doctors that accept both your workplace plan and TRICARE. * **TRICARE Prime:** While possible, having OHI with Prime is complicated. You are still required to use a Primary Care Manager (PCM) and get referrals for specialty care. If you see a doctor outside the Prime network using your employer insurance without a referral, TRICARE may not pay anything as the secondary payer. * **High Deductible Health Plans (HDHPs) and HSAs:** Be cautious if your employer offers a Health Savings Account (HSA). Per IRS rules, you cannot contribute to an HSA if you have "disqualifying" coverage, which includes TRICARE.
### The Maintenance Requirement You are legally required to report OHI to TRICARE. If you don't, TRICARE will likely deny your claims or attempt to recoup payments it already made. You must update your OHI status through your regional contractor: **Humana Military** (East) or **TriWest Healthcare Alliance** (West).
### Pharmacy Benefits If you have employer-sponsored drug coverage, it pays first and **Express Scripts** pays second. You cannot use the TRICARE Pharmacy Home Delivery option if you have OHI drug coverage, unless that coverage does not include pharmacy benefits or your medication is not covered by the primary plan.
## Who this affects * **Retirees and their families:** The most common group utilizing both, as many retirees start second careers. * **Active Duty Family Members (ADFMs):** Spouses who work and choose to enroll in their own company's plan. * **National Guard and Reserve:** Members who have TRICARE Reserve Select but also have civilian employment (though they are ineligible for TRS if they are eligible for the Federal Employees Health Benefits/FEHB program). * **Survivors:** Spouses of deceased service members who have remarried or found civilian employment.
## Sources * **TRICARE.mil:** [Using Other Health Insurance](https://www.tricare.mil/ohi) * **Humana Military (East):** [Coordination of Benefits](https://www.humanamilitary.com/beneficiary/claims/coordination-of-benefits) * **TriWest Healthcare Alliance (West):** [Other Health Insurance Guidelines](https://www.triwest.com/en/beneficiary/claims/other-health-insurance/) * **Express Scripts:** [TRICARE Pharmacy Program and OHI](https://militaryrx.express-scripts.com/)