In addition to a rewarding career and competitive salary, you are eligible to receive insurance, as well as food and housing allowances. Here are just some of the benefits of being a Guard member.
Insurance
Dental Insurance
Members of the Guard are eligible for dental coverage provided by United Concordia. Beneficiaries with questions about the current TRICARE Family Member Dental Plan can call United Concordia’s toll-free customer-service line, 1-800-866-8499, or visit the company’s website.
Health Insurance
Members of the Guard and their family members only obtain medical coverage if the member is on active duty for more than 30 days. The military member can be covered if on orders for less than 30 days, but the family coverage doesn’t begin until the 31st day of active duty. Information on benefits, eligibility, enrollment, costs, options, etc., are available at the TRICARE website.
Life Insurance
Service members are automatically insured for $250,000 under Service member’s Group Life Insurance (SGLI) unless a different amount is elected in writing. SGLI offers low-cost protection, and the small monthly premium is deducted from base pay. This is a great opportunity to provide for the welfare of your family. Does your family know how much life insurance coverage you have and where the policies are located? For information and forms pertaining to this and the following life insurance provisions, you may go to the SGLI website.
Family Life Insurance
Spouses were covered automatically beginning 1 November 2001 for $100,000 Spousal Family Life Insurance under the SGLI provisions. Premiums were deducted from the service member’s pay beginning their first pay date in November, providing the spouse was in the Defense Enrollment Eligibility Reporting System (DEERS). If a service member decided to reduce or decline this coverage, he or she would have had to complete a SGLV Form 8286A indicating the amount to which he/she wanted to reduce the coverage to or writing “I do not want coverage for my spouse at this time.” The beneficiary to this coverage is automatically the military sponsor whose pay the premiums are being deducted from. There is no provision in the law permitting a change of beneficiary on this spousal coverage.
Children are also covered under the Family Life Insurance provisions of SGLI. There are no premiums for your children, however, they need to be put into the DEERS for coverage. Each child the sponsor has responsibility to is covered for $10,000 with the beneficiary being the military sponsor. Children whose parents are both in the military will only be entitled to coverage under one parent. Additional information on this coverage is available at the aforementioned website.