Tricare referral waiver period expires Published July 11, 2013 By Heather Soule UnitedHealthcare HILL AIR FORCE BASE, Utah -- The temporary referral and authorization waiver for Tricare Prime, Tricare Prime Remote and Tricare Young Adult Prime expired on July 2 at midnight. As of July 3, health care providers should resume submitting referral and authorization requests for Tricare covered benefits for approval in accordance with Tricare procedures. The normal and authorization approval rules apply to all referrals issued beginning July 3. This means that the Tricare program will assess a 10 percent penalty on provider claims if an authorization is not present at the time services are processed when a prior authorization is required. If a referral and/or authorization was issued between April 1, 2013, and July 2, 2013, the waiver still applies for care to occur through Sept. 29, 2013. For more information, please visit uhcmilitarywest.com.