Every drilling Reservist and National Guard member would have access to a military health plan for a reasonable monthly premium, under an initiative endorsed Wednesday by the House Armed Services Committee.

The improved Tricare Reserve Select benefit, which senior defense officials oppose as too expensive, would take effect in 2008 and cost an estimated $3.4 billion over its first five years. It's in the committee's version of the fiscal 2007 defense authorization bill, along with language to derail the Department of Defense's own plan to raise Tricare fees and deductibles for retirees under age 65 and their families.

The committee also embraced its personnel subcommittee's plan to boost next January's military pay raise to 2.7 percent, a half percentage point higher than the Bush administration had proposed.

The committee said it could not find enough offsets from other accounts to avoid the Defense Department's call to raise co-payments on generic and brand-name prescription drugs at Tricare retail outlets.

Indeed, it even tacked on an extra dollar to each charge. Co-pays in the retail program would jump from $9 to $16 for a 30-day supply of a brand-name drug and from $3 to $6 for generic.

To encourage greater use of the Tricare mail-order program, which is far more cost-effective than retail, the committee voted to end all co-pays on formulary drugs obtained by mail. Currently, patients pay $9 for a three-month supply of brand-name medicine on the formulary, and $3 for generic.

Co-pays for nonformulary drugs, whether retail or mail order, would remain at $22.

The Senate Armed Services Committee was to complete its version of the 2007 defense authorization bill by Friday.

Only last December, Congress ordered three tiers of premiums for the Tricare Reserve Select benefits, which are similar to Tricare Standard fee-for-service coverage. The first tier, which the House committee wants all drilling reservists to have by 2008, would set premiums at 28 percent of the health plan's costs. It's the same cost-sharing formula used for federal civilians.

Currently, only reserve component members who complete post-9/11 deployments qualify for the 28 percent premiums. Rate amounts for 2006 are $81 a month for individual and $253 for family coverage. Tricare Reserve Select participants also pay usual Tricare Standard deductibles and cost-shares.

Eligible for the second tier are reservists and guard members who lack health insurance either because they are unemployed, self-employed or their employers have no health plan. Their premiums, under current law, are to equal 50 percent of program costs. That's $145 for individuals and $452 for family coverage. Third-tier premiums are for reservists who have alternative health insurance but choose not to use it. They must pay 85 percent of Tricare Reserve Select costs — roughly $245 a month for individuals and $768 for family.

Because Tricare officials haven't been able yet to implement the three-tier offering, the House committee delayed its planned shift to the 28 percent premium formula for all reservists until 2008.