Charlie Marlow
In case you hadn’t heard, the President signed the 2025 National Defense Authorization Act on 23 Dec 2024 bringing a number of provisions that will directly benefit military members and families including:
- A 4.5% pay increase for all military members E-5 and above and a 14.5% pay raise for junior enlisted members E-1 through E-4, effective 1 January 2025.
- Allowing service members and families to ship and store up to two privately owned vehicles during a permanent change of station move to certain overseas locations.
- Raising the threshold for the Basic Needs Allowance (BNA) from 150% to 200% of the federal poverty guideline
- Requiring an evaluation of how the Basic Allowance for Subsistence (BAS) is computed. The goal is to determine a realistic allowance for military members’ meals.
- Revaluating how cost-of-living allowances (COLA) are calculated so they include appropriate costs for location-specific items such as food, tolls, and other fees that may be charged in the CONUS or OCONUS.
- Eliminating copays for eligible TRICARE beneficiaries for contraceptives purchased through retail pharmacies and the national mail-order pharmacy.
- Providing telehealth care services to service members and family members regardless of the patient’s or provider’s location.
- Adding $177 million in military construction to replace unaccompanied housing and barracks.
- Requiring the Secretary of Defense to develop a policy for the military services to provide free internet service to members living in the barracks.
- Fully funds childcare fee assistance programs to eliminate fee assistance wait lists for eligible families.
- Permanently grants authority to the DoD to make transferring professional licenses between states easier for military spouses.
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