1.0 COMMUNICATIONS
The Government will provide
printed and digital educational materials except for geographical-designated
area provider education materials.
1.1 The
contractor shall distribute Government-furnished materials from
the national suite of products to Markets/Military Medical Treatment
Facilities (MTFs), National Guard and Reserve units, military recruiters,
other Government agencies, and beneficiaries.
1.1.1 This
will be done in conjunction with the Government’s quarterly production
schedule.
1.1.2 The Government may also print
off-cycle due to excess demand.
1.1.3 The
contractor shall adjust its distribution accordingly.
1.2 The
contractor shall submit contractor-produced educational materials
to the DHA Communications for review and approval.
1.3 DHA
Communications review and approval may take up to 60 calendar days.
Approval will be based on justification that supports a uniform
image and consistency in the provision of TRICARE Program information.
1.4 The
contractor shall include links to TRICARE’s social media, web pages,
and email subscription services in its print and digital marketing
and education materials.
1.5 The
contractor shall send text messages to enrolled beneficiaries on
behalf of DHA Communications.
1.5.1 DHA
Communications will provide messaging for open enrollment season
and geo-targeting disaster messaging.
1.5.2 The
contractor shall follow federal and state privacy laws with regard
to opting in or out of text messaging services.
1.6 The
contractor shall use email aliases assigned by DHA Communications
when sending emails to beneficiaries that indicates the message
is from TRICARE.
1.7 The
contractor shall use marketing toolkits provided by DHA Communications,
including briefings, emails, and text messages when communicating
with beneficiaries.
1.8 The
contractor shall allow the beneficiary to opt-out of or unsubscribe
from electronic communications upon request.
2.0 CONTRACTOR ENGAGEMENT WITH
DHA COMMUNICATIONS
2.1 The
contractor shall participate in formal teleconferences with DHA
Communications to discuss marketing and education activities.
2.2 The
contractor shall be available for ad-hoc meetings upon request of
DHA Communications. Subjects may include significant legislative
changes, or crisis events (e.g., natural disasters, war, world events,
and data security events).
3.0 GENERAL
REQUIREMENTS
3.1 The contractor shall use training
material provided by DHA Communications when conducting the required
three-day TRICARE training course in accordance with
Section 2.
3.2 The
contractor shall conduct this course each quarter at locations within
the contractor’s geographical area of responsibility.
4.0 PUBLICATIONS
4.1 The contractor shall distribute
newsletters provided by DHA Communications to all enrolled and eligible beneficiaries,
Congressional offices, and Beneficiary Counseling and Assistance
Coordinators (BCACs).
4.1.1 This includes one newsletter
each quarter, with one being printed and mailed, and three being emailed.
4.1.2 The
printed newsletter will be the annual open enrollment season newsletter
delivered 60 to 90 calendar days before open enrollment season begins.
4.1.2.1 This includes one newsletter
each quarter, with one quarter being printed and mailed, and three quarters
being emailed.
4.1.2.2 The
contractor shall mail the printed version.
4.2 Use
and Development
4.2.1 The
contractor shall use educational materials provided by the DHA Communications.
4.2.2 DHA Communications
is responsible for the overall development, design, and content
writing of the materials.
4.2.3 The
contractor shall develop materials by exception using the current
Military Health System (MHS) style guide to support specific initiatives.
4.2.4 The
contractor shall coordinate its digital and print template design
with DHA Communications.
4.2.5 The
contractor shall collaborate, including review when requested, in
the development of content for TRICARE Program educational materials.
This includes submitting updates and suggesting topics for educational materials.
4.2.6 The
contractor shall discuss Publication products with DHA Communications
on a monthly basis, at a minimum.
4.2.7 The
contractor shall annually validate the names and contact information
for its communications and marketing personnel.
4.2.8 The
contractor shall communicate to DHA Communications any significant
communication and marketing personnel changes within seven calendar
days of the change.
4.2.9 The
contractor shall make recommendations quarterly to the DHA Communications
about creating new materials or updating existing materials.
4.2.10 The contractor shall identify,
verbally or in writing, educational needs arising as a result of
new or modified benefits as needed.
4.2.11 The contractor shall communicate,
collaborate and coordinate with DHA Communications Division regarding
public announcements of program changes in educational materials.
4.3 Ordering
and Storage
4.3.1 The contractor shall be responsible
for all storage, handling, and distribution of printed materials received
from the Government.
4.3.2 The
contractor shall submit initial material requests to DHA Communications
with a copy to the Contracting Officer (CO) and Government Designated
Authority (GDA).
4.3.3 The
contractor shall send requests for future copies of existing materials
to DHA Communications. Requests shall follow the process and time
frames noted in the production and delivery schedule given to the contractor
by DHA Communications.
4.3.4 The
contractor shall provide DHA Communications with the storage facility
address and information within 90 calendar days and provide DHA
Communications with any address changes.
4.3.5 The
contractor shall use or refer to the
https://tricare.mil website
when print material is not available.
4.3.6 DHA TRICARE
materials are maintained on
https://tricare.mil in
electronic format for downloading and distribution.
4.3.7 The
contractor shall, based on its own discretion and requests from
beneficiaries, request additional educational materials from the
dental contractor (Active Duty Service Member (ADSM) and Active
Duty Family Member (ADFM)).
4.3.8 The
contractor shall inform DHA Communications Division and the GDA
of these requests one month prior to needing the material.
4.3.9 The
contractor shall, based on its own discretion and inquiries from
beneficiaries, request additional educational materials from the
pharmacy contractor.
4.3.10 The
contractor shall inform DHA Communications and the GDA of these
requests one month prior to needing the materials.
4.4 Distribution
4.4.1 The
contractor shall distribute existing, relevant DHA Communications-developed
or approved geographic area of responsibility-specific education
materials to beneficiaries, the geographical area of responsibility
Markets/MTFs, Congressional offices, and other interested parties
actively involved in or interested in the TRICARE benefit upon request,
Government direction or request. This may be done through mail or
other delivery means with the approval from the Government.
4.4.2 The
contractor shall print and mail out a welcome packet to each new
beneficiary household. Welcome packets will include a welcome letter,
costs, fees sheet, wallet, and the appropriate plan or program handbook
DHA communications develops the packet contents.
5.0 SOCIAL
MEDIA
5.1 The contractor shall, when
using social media to communicate with TRICARE beneficiaries, only
use official TRICARE social media platforms.
5.2 The
contractor shall submit topics of interest to DHA Communications
for TRICARE social media channels on an ongoing basis.
5.3 The
contractor shall provide customer service support to DHA Communications
to assist in responding to comments and questions received via social
media.
5.4 The contractor shall answer
comments and questions received via the TRICARE website, social
media platforms, and email within two business hours from receiving
the comment or question from DHA Communications.
5.5 The
contractor shall participate in up to six Government-hosted live
events on TRICARE social media platforms each contract option period.
6.0 BENEFICIARY
OUTREACH
6.1 The contractor shall submit
a written annual plan listing which beneficiary outreach events
it will attend where it discusses the TRICARE benefit or speaks
to TRICARE beneficiaries.
6.2 The
contractor shall use a DHA Communications-approved TRICARE scheme
for any conference exhibit booths.
6.3 The
contractor shall provide TRICARE-knowledgeable staff to support
DHA Communications at conference exhibit booths up to six times
per year. Conferences may or may not be within the contractor’s geographical
area of responsibility and are generally one to three calendar days,
up to 10 hours per day.
6.4 The
contractor shall respond to beneficiary inquiries regarding pending
significant benefit or program changes affecting the majority of
beneficiaries or plan members using scripts, responses, or toolkits
provided by DHA Communications.
6.4.1 DHA
Communications will provide contractors with the scripts and responses
for review at least 15 calendar days before the Government issues
the contract modification or implementation date.
6.4.2 The
contractor shall, after use of DHA Communications-approved content,
submit a written report on the effect of communication and education
efforts at least 90 calendar days after use of the content was fully implemented.
6.4.3 The
contractor shall provide additional evaluations as required or directed
by DHA Communications.
6.5 The
contractor shall refer beneficiaries to the TRICARE Medicare Eligible
Program (TMEP) contractor when it receives inquiries about the program’s
coverage and eligibility.
7.0 World
Wide Web (WWW)
7.1 The contractor shall only use
https://tricare.mil for
non-secure web communication.
7.1.1 The
contractor shall update
https://tricare.mil with
contract-specific information through the Government Content Management
System (CMS).
7.1.2 The
contractor shall access the CMS using a Department of Defense (DoD)
Common Access Card (CAC).
7.1.3 DHA
Communications will review and publish contractor CMS entries.
7.2 The
contractor shall design, host, and maintain a secure portal with
the look and feel of
https://tricare.mil. Identified
users - beneficiaries, provider, and Government staff will have
access to resources related to the contractor’s management of the
TRICARE benefit.
7.2.1 The
contractor shall submit portal redesign plans to DHA Communications
no later than 90 calendar days in advance of implementation and
testing.
7.2.2 The
contractor shall provide a secure electronic one-on-one messaging
feature, such as an online chat or a text messaging option in its
secure portal for beneficiary customer service.
7.3 The
contractor shall provide customer service support to respond within
30 calendar days for routine correspondence to comments and questions
received via web and email from either its secure portal, or through DHA
enterprise websites, as appropriate.
7.4 The
contractor shall, by invitation of DHA Communications, participate
in up to six live events each contract option period. These events
can include webinars or live streaming events hosted on TRICARE
digital platforms.
8.0 BRANDING
8.1 The
contractor shall use TRICARE brand standards when developing any
materials for beneficiaries and providers. Brand standards are located
at
https://tricare.mil/brand.
8.2 The
contractor shall follow laws and regulations related to trademark
protection when using TRICARE logos and marks including using ownership
statements.
8.3 The
contractor shall not use its own branding, logos, or marks on materials
sent to TRICARE beneficiaries.
8.4 The
contractor shall report branding violations, by network or non-network
providers, to DHA Communications within one business day after discovery.
9.0 MEDIA
RELATIONS
9.1 The contractor shall email
DHA Communications of any media inquiries relating to TRICARE immediately upon
receipt to dha.ncr.comm.cal.dha-media@mail.mil.
9.2 The
contractor shall submit to DHA Communications for approval any proposed
media activities such as responses to inquiries, news releases,
press conferences, publications, and other media events prior to
release of the information.
9.2.1 The
contractor shall provide copies of information provided to the media
and a summary of any discussions to DHA Communications.
9.2.2 The
contractor shall speak to the media only on issues for which it
has direct responsibility and not on issues beyond the scope of
the support it provides the Government.
10.0 REPORTS
AND DELIVERABLES
10.1 The
contractor shall share its list of beneficiary email addresses with
DHA Communications four times a year for messaging directly to beneficiaries.
For reporting requirements, see DD Form 1423, Contract Data Requirements
List (CDRL), located in Section J of the applicable contract.
10.2 The
contractor shall provide written or oral feedback to DHA Communications
following each TRICARE Fundamentals course (or equivalent) to assist
in providing appropriate training materials. For reporting requirements,
see DD Form 1423, CDRL, located in Section J of the applicable contract.
10.3 The
contractor shall report how many pieces from each required mailing
of the newsletter(s) were undeliverable and remove bad addresses
from its system, refer to
paragraph 4.1. For reporting requirements,
see DD Form 1423, CDRL, located in Section J of the applicable contract.
10.4 The
contractor shall report on the number of paper publications distributed,
destroyed, and on hand on a quarterly basis using Government-provided
templates. Details for submission are identified by DD Form 1423, CDRL,
located in Section J of the applicable contract.
10.5 The
contractor shall submit a written annual plan listing which beneficiary
outreach events it will attend where it discusses the TRICARE benefit
or speaks to TRICARE beneficiaries. For plan requirements, see DD
Form 1423, CDRL, located in Section J of the applicable contract.