Government Accountability Office study on reserve component dental readiness and benefit sufficiency

(a) Study The Comptroller General of the United States shall conduct a study on the sufficiency of the Department of Defense Reserve Component dental program in supporting the medical readiness and deployability of members of the reserve components. (b) Elements The study under subsection (a) shall include, at a minimum, the following: (1) An assessment of the extent to which current annual benefit caps, including the $1,500 coverage limit under the TRICARE Dental Program, contribute to dental nondeployability among members of the reserve components. (2) An evaluation of the relationship between out-of-pocket dental costs and delays in obtaining necessary dental care required for deployment readiness. (3) An analysis of the extent to which dental readiness requirements impose a financial burden on members of the reserve components, including whether such requirements function as an unfunded mandate on individual members. (4) A review of the findings of section 707 of the James M. Inhofe National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2023 (Public Law 117–263; 136 Stat. 2652) and an assessment of remaining gaps in data regarding dental readiness and benefit sufficiency. (5) An identification and evaluation of targeted, cost-effective policy options to improve dental readiness among members of the reserve components, including— (A) adjustments to annual benefit caps; (B) coverage of readiness-related dental procedures not currently included under existing plans; (C) alternative models for delivering dental care to reservists; and (D) any other mechanisms the Comptroller General determines appropriate to reduce cost-related barriers to deployability. (6) An assessment of the potential effects of such policy options on— (A) overall force readiness and deployability; (B) recruitment and retention within the reserve components; and (C) cost to the Department of Defense. (c) Briefing Not later than 180 days after the date of the enactment of this Act, the Comptroller General shall provide to the congressional defense committees a briefing on the preliminary observations and emerging findings of the study under subsection (a).