Exceptional Family Member Program Published Oct. 17, 2012 By Captain Raheem Lay 60th Medical Group Operations Squadron TRAVIS AIR FORCE BASE, Calif. -- Travis Air Force Base has one of the largest Exceptional Family Member Program populations throughout the entire Air Force. Its mission is to identify medical and educational service requirements of family members in support of active-duty sponsor reassignment and civilian employment overseas. The EFMP is a mandatory enrollment program based on carefully defined rules. An exceptional family member is a family member, regardless of age, who requires medical services for a chronic condition; receives ongoing services from any specialist outside a primary care physician or pediatrician; has mental health concerns or psychological needs; receives educational series provided on an Individualized Education Program; or a family member receiving series provider on a Individualized Family Service Plan. EFMP enrollment process Active-duty members and sponsors are responsible for contacting the EFMP office and enrolling all family members with chronic medical, psychological and educational problems requiring special services, as well as maintaining a copy of the EFM's forms. Users should review completed applications and update forms every two years or as family status changes. Plan users also are responsible for disenrolling when divorced, an EFM dies, medical or educational needs no longer exist or the family member no longer resides with the sponsor. Benefits of EFMP enrollment EFMP will benefit the entire family allowing accurate assessment of career and family needs during assignment decisions. EFMP offers case management services to better assist and coordinate services with other helping agencies both on and off base. Respite care services are intended to provide temporary rest periods for family members with special needs or family members who are responsible for regular care of another family member with special needs. Respite care is not to be used for regular full-time daycare expenses or before or after school care. Furthermore, the respite care program is not intended to provide medical or custodial care for adults or long-term care. Respite care for more than six consecutive hours is considered long-term care. TRICARE's Extended Care Health Option respite care ECHO provides financial assistance to beneficiaries who qualify based on specific mental or physical disabilities and offers an integrated set of series and supplies beyond the basic TRICARE program. In-home respite care services include ECHO respite care and ECHO home health care respite care. ECHO respite care includes up to 16 hours per month when receiving other authorized ECHO benefits. ECHO home health care respite care includes up to eight hours per day, five days per week if homebound. Only one of the two ECHO respite care benefits can be used in a calendar month. Enrollment in EFMP is required to receive this benefit. For further information on ECHO, please visit the TRICARE website. PCSing soon? Travis EFMP staff understands the demands and challenges of relocating to a new duty station and would like to assist with this process. To ensure a smooth transition, please contact a family member relocation office and speak with a relocation clearance coordinator to complete an EFMP/PCS screening process. This assessment is designed to evaluate a member's needs and address specific concerns. Upon completion, FMRCC will forward this evaluation to a person's installation, allowing that installation ample time to gather resources prior to arrival. It also is important when arriving at a new installation to check in with the installation medical facility for additional services. Travis EFMP exists not only to assist families with enrolling or re-enrolling in the EFMP, but also can serve as an advocate on behalf of the EFMP families and also as a vital link between exceptional families and federal, state and local resources. For more information, call 423-7639.