Last May, when the Office of Personnel Management (OPM) signed a second

7-year contract with John Hancock Life and Health Insurance Company to provide

insurance for the Federal Long-Term Care Insurance Program's (FLTCIP), it also

announced changes to the benefits and premiums.

Upsetting to thousands of federal employees enrolled in FLTCIP was a

premium increase of up to 25 percent -- specifically for those enrollees

with the "automatic compound inflation" option who were under age 70 when they

purchased the coverage and who choose to keep the same coverage they have now

under the new OPM contract with the carrier.  

Many federal employees in that group of FLTCIP enrollees, whose premiums

will increase on or about January 1, 2010,  have said they either

overlooked the terms of the policy regarding the potential premium

increases, or felt they were mislead in the language of the policy. 

As a result, federal employees and Congress have put OPM under pressure, as

href="http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/09/09/AR2009090902807_pf.html"

target=_blank>reported in the Washington Post, "to make the terms of the

program it oversees more transparent, told Del. Eleanor Holmes Norton (D-D.C.)

in a letter that the agency is requiring the program's insurance company to

'mention the conditions under which premiums may increase in a more prominent

manner.'"

In June, Sen. Herb Kohl (D-Wis.) co-authored legislation to regulate the

long-term care insurance industry.  Specifically, the bill (S. 1177) would

increase consumer protections through measures such as stabilizing

premium rates; creating criteria for the development and enforcement of

model marketing language, disclosures and definitions used to solicit long-term

insurance policies; and the training and certification of

agents. 

OPM anticipates the new benefit options will be available for new applicants

approved for coverage sometime this fall. At that time, the current benefit plan

will be discontinued for new applicants. According to OPM, current enrollees

will also have the opportunity this fall to change to the new benefit options or

make changes to their coverage.