Each year, an Open Season is held for FEHB Program enrollees to change health

plans and/or the type of enrollment they have. 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.