Federal employees have until Monday to make changes to their health insurance under the Federal Employees Health Benefits Program open season.
The open season runs from Nov. 10 through Dec. 8. The Office of Personnel Management has urged employees to review their benefits.
The annual premiums federal employees pay for their health insurance rose an average of 15 percent this year. But that average masks wide variation among the more than 300 plans available under FEHBP. Some people will have to pay up to 75 percent more if they stay in the same plan. But other plans' premiums decreased and some stayed the same.
Regional variations contribute to the wide fluctuation. For example, premiums for the three FEHBP plans in California with the largest family enrollments will increase no more than 5 percent, while premiums for the three plans in Washington, D.C. with the largest family enrollments will increase by more than 10 percent.
Employees whose plans have dropped out of FEHBP this year must choose a new plan by Monday. But anyone who is content with their current insurance plan and with the plan's premiums does not have to do anything during the open season.
Thirty-two new plans joined FEHBP this year. Employees living in areas with new plans may want to compare the new plans with their present plan.
"The annual competition for participants helps to keep premiums competitive," says William Flynn, associate director for retirement and insurance at OPM.
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