Health Care

Primary and special preventative care services are provided at the 412th Medical Group on Edwards Air Force Base. There are no intensive care or obstetrics services. Patients experiencing urgent or critical illnesses or injuries will be referred downtown or to another military facility. Edwards is in the TRICARE West region.

When you move, TRICARE moves with you. No matter where you go in the world, TRICARE is there before, during and when you get to your next duty station.

There are steps you need to take to make sure changes to your TRICARE coverage go smoothly. Understand that when you move, you may have to use a different TRICARE option. Visit TRICARE Moving to learn more.

Before you move, you should take care of any routine medical needs, including immunizations, and fill your prescriptions so you have enough while traveling. If you need care during your move, visit TRICARE Getting Care When Traveling to learn what to do.

Filling prescriptions while traveling

You should refill prescriptions before traveling. But if you run out of a prescription drug while traveling, visit TRICARE Filling Prescriptions When Traveling.

Getting dental care while traveling

Getting dental care while traveling depends on your location and whether you are a service member or family member.

• If you are an active-duty service member within the United States or in U.S. territories, and near a military installation, you may be able to get emergency dental care at the dental treatment facility, or DTF, if available. If not, contact the TRICARE Active Duty Dental Care Program before you see a dentist and tell the contractor about your move. You will need to get an authorization before you see a dentist. The Active Duty Dental Care Program will work with you, so you can get care from a local network dentist.
• If you are an active-duty service member at an overseas location, call the TRICARE overseas regional call center to get authorization before you see a civilian dentist.
• If you are an active-duty family member within the United States, in U.S. territories or at an overseas location, you can find out if any nearby military dental treatment facility treats active-duty family members. If you're enrolled in the TRICARE dental program, call the TRICARE dental program contractor or visit their website to find a provider. You will need to get an authorization before you see the dentist.

With permanent change of station orders, ask for a copy of your medical and dental records from your military treatment facility and the dental treatment facility. Do this at least one month before your PCS date. The MTF should also transfer a copy of your record and any family records to your new duty station or you may be able to hand carry them to your new duty station.

If you want someone else to be able to get medical or dental information on you or your family while you are moving, you need to complete a DD Form 2870, "Authorization for Disclosure of Medical or Dental Information."

For more information on getting copies of medical records, visit TRICARE Request Copies of Medical Records.

Medical care

All Department of Defenses beneficiaries (identification card holders) enrolled with the 412 Medical Group Medical Treatment Facility at Edwards Air Force Base are eligible for clinic services, and all other cardholders are seen on a Space-Available basis. If an emergency occurs (regardless of the person’s status), we will treat, stabilize and transfer them to the nearest emergency room.

Only primary and special preventative care services are provided by the 412 Medical Group.   

There is no intensive care, obstetrics services or emergency care. An emergency is defined as loss of limb, life or eyesight. For emergencies, dial 911 for the local area ambulance, which is partnered with the 412 Medical Group, or go to the nearest emergency room off base, which is the Antelope Valley Hospital, located at 1600 West Ave. J in Lancaster, California, about 30 minutes from the main base and 20 minutes for residents outside Edwards’ West Gate. Patients experiencing urgent or critical illnesses or injuries will be referred off base or to another military facility. TRICARE will pay the bill if the member is enrolled in TRICARE.

After-hours emergency care for those enrolled in TRICARE: There is no after-hours emergency care available at the clinic. On-site obstetrics delivery is no longer offered at the clinic and patients are referred to local hospitals.

Edwards AFB has the only fully operating paramedic-level ambulance service in DOD; our ambulance service meets civilian community standards. Two ambulance crews are on duty 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, at the clinic. There is one primary crew and one backup crew are available. Each crew has one paramedic and one emergency medical technician. Paramedics will assess patients at the scene, provide necessary care and determine if a transfer is warranted.

If you live off base (family members or active duty) or seek care off base and are enrolled with the base clinic (all active-duty members are enrolled with the base clinic), you should first contact the on-call doctor at 661-277-7118.

Edwards AFB medical clinics operate by appointment only, which can be made by calling 661-277-7118. Clinic hours are 7:30 a.m.-4:30 p.m. TRICARE Prime enrollees requiring urgent medical needs have access to a primary care manager 24 hours a day, seven days a week. To obtain a PCM, contact the TRICARE office at 800-538-9552.

After-hours non-emergency care authorization procedures (for those who are enrolled with Edwards AFB 412 Medical Group Clinic): All TRICARE Prime dependents are eligible to utilize urgent care facilities and services in the TRICARE network without a referral. Active-duty members must gain authorization prior to utilizing urgent care facilities and services.

For concerns or issues regarding TRICARE, contact the commander of TRICARE at 661-277-2011 or
DSN 312-527-2011, the clinic commander at 661-277-2183 or DSN 312-527-2183, or the point of contact for TRICARE at 661-277-2662 or DSN 312-527-2662.

Dental care

The dental squadron at Edwards AFB has nine general dentists to provide comprehensive dental care for active-duty members assigned to the Air Force Flight Test Center and geographically separated units. Treatment that is beyond the scope of our care is generally referred to San Diego Naval Dental Center, which has been designated our TRICARE Dental lead agent.

Active-duty personnel seeking routine care can call the dental appointments desk Monday-Friday at 661-277-2872 or 661-277-3396, or DSN 312-527-2872 or 312-527-3396. For emergency care during duty hours, report to dental sick call, Monday-Friday, 7:15 a.m.-12:45 p.m. After-hours emergency care is available by the dental officer of the day, who is on call and will be contacted by emergency room personnel.

All active-duty personnel receive a periodic/annual dental examination and a cleaning at the same visit. Subsequent care will be by appointment. Appointments are considered mandatory formation and broken appointments are reported to the patient's commander.

Family members are not authorized routine dental care at the base clinic. Dental care for non-active-duty personnel is limited to emergency relief of acute dental pain or trauma. The TRICARE Family Member Dental Plan, however, has been established to ensure that family members have access to dental care at an affordable cost.