Being enrolled in this system is a must when your soldier joins the military. This is an organization wide system that allows any military facility to verify your access to military benefits including, but not limited to, healthcare.
Enrollment in DEERS is not automatic. Your soldier must enroll any dependents by visiting the nearest Personnel Service Center. When your soldier goes to basic training, he will enroll all eligible family members during his inprocessing at reception. If the soldier is not available to enroll family members, a spouse can do this in his place assuming a power of attorney (POA) has been provided.
To process enrollment in DEERS, they will need to see the birth certificate and social security card of each person being enrolled. In the case of the spouse, they will also need a marriage certificate. In most cases, they will need originals or certified copies of these documents.
Do not delay in getting enrolled in DEERS. All military benefits are dependent on being enrolled in DEERS.
I recently got married to a man in the military. I found that enrollment in DEERS was crucial to receiving any benefits especially insurance. I did not have power of attorney set up yet so we had to go in together which made it a whole lot easier. I tried calling, however, it seems going in to the office is much faster and more efficient in getting a response. It was difficult because he was reserve status and then when he left for AIT training he became active duty. I had to go back after I just got my id just so I could get one that was a different color, showing active duty status. While these steps are tedious and time-consuming, it is important to get DEERS set up properly so you can have access to all the benefits.