in 1884, the U.S. Congress established the first rudimentary healthcare system for military members, stating that “medical officers of the Army and contract surgeons shall whenever possible attend the families of the officers and soldiers free of charge.” From 1940 to 1990, this system underwent significant changes as it evolved to meet the ever expanding needs of providing quality care for millions of military families. “TriCArE,” says rear Admiral Thomas J. Mcginnis, chief of the pharmaceutical Operations Directorate within the TriCArE Management Activity, “is the purchased care component of the military healthcare system that manages beneficiary access to the worldwide system of providers that provide care to active duty service members, retirees, their families, and survivors—a total of 9.6 million beneficiaries.” The U.S. Department of Defense (DoD) provides a pharmacy benefit to all eligible uniformed service members and their families, which includes all retirees and their families, including beneficiaries over the age of 65. “The role of the pharmacy program,” according to Mcginnis, “is to provide a consistent, equitable, and cost-efficient pharmacy benefit to all DoD covered beneficiaries. Along with maintaining a national network of more than 347,000 physicians, TRICARE also has 61,000 pharmacies within its system.