For years, lawmakers and defense officials have talked about streamlining Tricare into a single plan. That full consolidation hasn’t happened, but 2026 will come the closest yet, with a pilot program testing a new model in two cities and a batch of reforms targeting access and cost. Meanwhile, a new threat may affect the civilian hospitals that more than 700,000 military beneficiaries depend on.What the Changed Due to the Fiscal 2026 NDAA and OtherwiseThe fiscal 2026 National Defense Authorization Act, signed into law in December 2025, included several Tricare provisions that take effect this year. The act and other measures:Bolstered military medical billets. The fiscal 2026 NDAA extended a previously enacted halt on military medical billet cuts and required new endorsements for the restructuring of military treatment facilities (MTFs), including an endorsement by the Joint Chiefs chair that the restructuring won’t affect operational requirements.Improved travel benefits. The NDAA reduced the distance threshold for the Tricare Prime Travel Benefit from 100 miles to 75 miles for active-duty members and families who must travel for specialty care.Opened up military treatment facilities to veterans. The NDAA also directed the Pentagon to increase utilization of MTFs with excess capacity by cross-credentialing providers to jointly care for veterans in MTFs and VA facilities, a provision that connects directly to the VA’s own restructuring of its community care network. Allowed weight loss prescriptions. Tricare will now cover weight loss drugs for treating obesity when prescribed by a network provider and integrated into a comprehensive treatment plan.Read More: A VA Clinic Gave Veterans GLP-1s for Weight Loss. A Year Later, Everything ImprovedFaster credentialing of military providers. The Digital Oversight of Credentials for Service Members (DOCS) Act required centralized credentialing to speed up provider license verifications at MTFs.What the Fiscal 2026 NDAA Did Not ChangeThe fiscal 2026 NDAA did not include:Longer eligibility for dependents. The bipartisan Health Care Fairness for Military Families Act is still pending. It would extend Tricare dependent coverage to age 26 at no additional cost, aligning Tricare with standard civilian insurance. Premiums for Tricare Young Adult, which is for adult dependents up to age 21, or 23 if attending college, reached $794 per month for Prime and $363 for Select in 2026.More IVF coverage. The final NDAA did not include a provision that would have given IVF coverage to all service members and families. Tricare will cover fertility treatments only in cases in which a service-connected injury or illness caused infertility.The Civilian Hospital ProblemThe Pentagon buys more than 65% of all care under Tricare from civilian providers, according to the White House’s fiscal 2026 budget request for the Military Health System. That dependence makes the financial health of civilian hospitals a direct military readin