Tricare New online resource offers beneficiaries Published Oct. 30, 2007 Air Force Print News FALLS CHURCH, Va -- A new online educational resource offers Tricare beneficiaries a secure, safe environment to seek information, educational materials and self-assessment tools on behavioral health, addiction and recovery, life events and daily living skills. "AchieveSolutions" can be accessed through the behavioral health link in the beneficiary resources area of the Humana Military Healthcare Services' Web site, http://www.humana-military.com. HMHS is the managed care contractor for the Tricare South Region. Recognizing stress factors "It is critical we recognize that our service members and families face enormous stress, and that stress can affect physical as well as mental health," said Army Maj. Gen. Elder Granger, Tricare Management Activity deputy director. "We support all efforts to reach out and offer help and advice on dealing with life's challenges." The Department of Defense Task Force on Mental Health report recently referenced a DOD survey of health-related behaviors among military personnel indicating 74 percent of active-duty members cope with stress by talking with a friend or family member. Education, skill-building Those individuals play a key role in influencing service members to seek help. As such, family members, as well as service members, need to be equipped with coping skills, the ability to recognize distress, and the knowledge of how and where to get assistance. The new AchieveSolutions site offers education and skill-building opportunities. AchieveSolutions was developed by Value-Options for the Behavioral Health, Employee Assistance Program and Work/Life Value-Options, the south region subcontractor for mental health. AchieveSolutions builds off of Value-Options' expertise in human behavior, and the importance of prevention, to provide quality information and education. Since the tools are on the Web, the information is available to all Tricare beneficiaries at the touch of a fingertip. Resources provided on the Web site, which are offered in both English and Spanish, include access to self-referral tools, behavioral health program information, interactive self-assessment applications with solutions, health risk assessment tools and benefit information. Updates continual AchieveSolutions contains more than 6,000 articles covering more than 200 topical areas including information on advocacy, emotional well-being, family concerns, dealing with illness, loss and grief, alcoholism and substance abuse. The content of the site is continually updated with new research, articles and material. The information is clinically credible, current and consistent with ValueOptions' focus on quality, said Dave Baker, the HMHS president and chief executive officer. To ensure user privacy, the Web site is a VeriSign secure site, which means that all traffic to and from the server is secured by encryption. Visitors can be assured that their Web history will remain private. Offers privacy "This new tool offers our beneficiaries the privacy needed to research a potential health concern without fear of repercussion," Mr. Baker said. "ValueOptions is proud to manage the mental health benefit for Tricare beneficiaries, including active duty (service members) and their families," said Barbara Hill, the CEO of ValueOptions. "ValueOptions' Achieve Solutions tool serves as an accessible vehicle to provide much needed behavioral health support and education. It's an effective use of technology that allows us to reach out to the service community in an entirely new way."