Each year, an Open Season is held for FEHB Program enrollees to change health plans and/or the type of enrollment they have.  For information on the 2009 FEHB open season click here.

Eligible employees may also enroll during this time. Open Season runs from the Monday of the second full workweek in November through the Monday of the second full workweek in December

There are limited opportunities to enroll, cancel your enrollment, or change your enrollment outside of an Open Season.

Each year, in early November, your current Federal Emloyee Health Benefits plan provider sends you a brochure, and your retirement office sends you instructions for ordering brochures and making Open Season changes.  

It is very important that you keep your address up to date to ensure that you receive your Open Season materials each year. If you move, please be sure to let your retirement office know your new address. Any address request sent to OPM must have your CSA or CSF claim number so that we can identify you

Your new plan will mail you an identification card. If you need services before you receive your new card, contact your new plan at the member services number in your brochure.

If you decide not to change your enrollment, do not respond to the Open Season material. Your coverage under your current health plan continues automatically.

Cancellation

You may voluntarily cancel your enrollment at any time. If you cancel, you will not be entitled to a 31-day extension of coverage for conversion to a non-group (private) policy and neither you nor your family members will be entitled to a temporary continuation of coverage (TCC). Once your cancellation takes effect, you will not be able to enroll again as a retiree unless you have been continuously covered as a family member under another enrollment in the FEHB since the date of your cancellation, and you lose the coverage because the enrollment ends or the enrolle changes from self and family to self only.

Suspension

• You may suspend your FEHB enrollment for any of the following reasons:
• to enroll in a Medicare Advantage plan (these are Health Maintenance Organizations of Fee-for-Service plans approved by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services):
• because you are eligible under Medicaid or a similar state-sponsored program of medical assistance for the needy; or
• because you have coverage under Peace Corps, TRICARE, TRICARE For Life, or CHAMPVA military program

For more information on how to suspend your FEHB enrollment, contact your retirement office. Time limitations and other restrictions apply. For instance, you must submit eligibility documentation that you are suspending FEHB to enroll in one of the other programs listed in case you wish to reenroll in the FEHB Program at a later time.

If you have suspended FEHB coverage for one of the eligible programs (and submitted the required documentation) but now want to enroll in the FEHB Program again, you may enroll during Open Season. You may reenroll outside Open Season only if you move out of the Medicare Advantage plan's service area, or you involuntarily lose coverage under one of the eligible programs. If you cancel your coverage for any reason, you cannot reenroll.

Coordination of FEHB benefits with Medicare or other coverage

If the original Medicare Plan is your primary payer, which is generally the case if you have Medicare and are not working, check the plan brochure to see if the plan waives some of its FEHB cost-sharing (e.g., deductibles, coinsurance, or copayments.)

If you are interested in an HMO plan, some FEHB HMOs also offer Medicare Advantage plans. Information on coordinating benefits with other coverage, original Medicare or Medicare Advantage is available in Section 9 of the plan brochures.