IMPROVED INFORMATION EXCHANGE BETWEEN MILITARY TREATMENT FACILITIES AND TRICARE PROGRAM CONTRACTORS.

SEC. 712. IMPROVED INFORMATION EXCHANGE BETWEEN MILITARY TREATMENT FACILITIES AND TRICARE PROGRAM CONTRACTORS. (a) Uniform Interfaces.— The Secretary of Defense shall ensure that the automated medical information system being developed by the Department of Defense (known as the Composite Health Care System) provides for uniform interfaces between information systems of military treatment facilities and private contractors under managed care programs of the TRICARE program. The uniform interface shall provide for a full electronic two-way exchange of health care information between the military treatment facilities and contractor information systems, including enrollment information, information regarding eligibility determinations, provider net 110 STAT. 2591work information, appointment information, and information regarding the existence of third-party payers. (b) Amendment of Existing Contracts.— To assure a single consistent source of information throughout the health care delivery system of the uniformed services, the Secretary of Defense shall amend each TRICARE program contract, with the consent of the TRICARE program contractor and notwithstanding any requirement for competition, to require the contractor— (1) to use software furnished under the Composite Health Care System to record military treatment facility provider appointments; and (2) to record TRICARE program enrollment through direct use of the Composite Health Care System software or through the uniform two-way interface between the contractor and military treatment facilities systems, where applicable. (c) Definition of TRICARE Program.— For purposes of this section, the term “TRICARE program” means the managed health care program that is established by the Secretary of Defense under the authority of chapter 55 of title 10, United States Code, principally section 1097 of such title, and includes the competitive selection of contractors to financially underwrite the delivery of health care services under the Civilian Health and Medical Program of the Uniformed Services.