There is established on the books of the Treasury a fund to be known as the Department of Defense Medicare-Eligible Retiree Health Care Fund (hereinafter in this chapter referred to as the “Fund”), which shall be administered by the Secretary of the Treasury. The Fund shall be used for the accumulation of funds in order to finance on an actuarially sound basis liabilities of the uniformed services under uniformed services retiree health care programs for medicare-eligible beneficiaries.

In this chapter:

(1) The term “uniformed services retiree health care programs” means the provisions of this title or any other provision of law creating an entitlement to or eligibility for health care for a member or former member of a participating uniformed service who is entitled to retired or retainer pay, and an eligible dependent under such program.

(2) The term “eligible dependent” means a dependent described in section 1076(a)(2) (other than a dependent of a member on active duty), 1076(b), 1086(c)(2), or 1086(c)(3) of this title.

(3) The term “medicare-eligible”, with respect to any person, means entitled to benefits under part A of title XVIII of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 1395c et seq.).

(4) The term “participating uniformed service” means the Army, Navy, Air Force, and Marine Corps, and any other uniformed service that is covered by an agreement entered into under subsection (c).

(5) The term “members of the uniformed services on active duty” does not include a cadet at the United States Military Academy, the United States Air Force Academy, or the Coast Guard Academy or a midshipman at the United States Naval Academy.

The Secretary of Defense shall enter into an agreement with each other administering Secretary (as defined in section 1072(3) of this title) for participation in the Fund by a uniformed service under the jurisdiction of that Secretary. The agreement shall require that Secretary to determine contributions to the Fund on behalf of the members of the uniformed service under the jurisdiction of that Secretary in a manner comparable to the determination with respect to contributions to the Fund made by the Secretary of Defense under section 1115(b) of this title, and such contributions shall be paid into the Fund as provided in section 1116(a).

(Added Pub. L. 106–398, § 1 [[div. A], title VII, § 713(a)(1)], Oct. 30, 2000, 114 Stat. 1654, 1654A–179; amended Pub. L. 107–107, div. A, title VII, § 711(a), (b)(1), (e)(1), (2), title X, § 1048(a)(12), Dec. 28, 2001, 115 Stat. 1164–1166, 1223; Pub. L. 107–314, div. A, title VII, § 704(b), Dec. 2, 2002, 116 Stat. 2584; Pub. L. 108–375, div. A, title VII, § 725(c)(1), Oct. 28, 2004, 118 Stat. 1992; Pub. L. 109–364, div. A, title V, § 592(a), Oct. 17, 2006, 120 Stat. 2233.)