Military Families
MrsMandyPandy
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does tricare cover breast pumps?
MrsMandyPandy
member
Ive heard some Ins companies do. Anyone know if Tricare does. My next OB apt is not till mid Jan so I thought id ask 
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Re: does tricare cover breast pumps?
From the Tricare site-
"
Breast Pump
TRICARE may cover electric hospital-grade breast pumps for premature infants who meet certain criteria. The breast pump may be covered for use in the hospital, and in certain cases, if the physician can prove medical necessity, for home use.
TRICARE does not cover:
I'd still like clarification of "certain criteria" for premature infants. DD was a month early and severely jaundiced which made it impossible for her to latch. She could take a bottle, but Tricare denied my doctor's and the specialist's request for a breast pump, even during the hospital stay.
Most hospitals do provide a hand pump, but you might want to inquire about the type or just buy your own. The one I was given fell apart with every other squeeze.
I'm surprised to hear this! I would've asked to resubmit the claim. Tricare covered a hospital grade pump for me, but my daughter was born at 27 wks; they did only cover it until discharge and after that I had to rent it (at $45/mo). On a separate note - you can usually find rentals of hospital grade pumps (SO worth it compared to other options - at the very least you want one of the good electric ones in the $200-$300 range) for $50 or less/mo, so to rent for 6 mo is the same as paying for a good Medela and worth it. I pumped exclusively bc my DD was so premature and then never latched, and I couldn't have been successful without the hospital grade one.
At McConnell AFB in Wichita, the medical group provides high quality pumps for you to "rent" for free while breast feeding, and they give you new parts so that you aren't using something someone else has. See if your base provides this as well!