FEHB Premiums Rise 10.9% on Average in 2027, But 20 Plans Cost Less

The Office of Personnel Management (OPM) puts the average increase in the enrollee share of Federal Employees Health Benefits (FEHB) Program premiums at 10.9% for 2027. That average hides a smaller group of plans moving the other way. In OPM’s 2027 premium rate files, 20 of the 117 FEHB plan options with comparable 2026 and 2027 rates cost a Self Only enrollee less next year.

The same is true for 22 plan options at Self Plus One and 21 at Self and Family. The year-over-year reductions range from a few dollars to $7,242.30 annually, while the largest increases add as much as $5,892.90 a year. This article lists the plans with falling premiums, those with the largest increases, and the premium differences that enrollees may want to consider when comparing alternatives.

---

Get an email when the 2027 comparison tool goes live

Enter an email address here to receive a message the day OPM’s 2027 plan comparison tool and plan brochures are available, along with the key open season dates.

---

How the Count Works

For this analysis, each FEHB plan option is counted once across its three enrollment types. Repeated state listings for the same enrollment codes are counted together, while options with different enrollment-code sets are counted separately. The 2027 files contain 118 FEHB plan options. One of them, the new Sharp Health Plan Basic Option in California, has no 2026 rate, leaving 117 that can be compared year over year.

Each of the 117 has three rates, one each for Self Only, Self Plus One and Self and Family, so the counts differ slightly by enrollment type. A plan counts as cheaper only when the enrollee’s biweekly share falls. Annual figures in this article are the biweekly share multiplied by 26 pay periods. Because of rounding, the annual premium amounts differ from the monthly rates retirees pay multiplied by 12 by no more than 16 cents.

OPM’s 10.9% is the average increase OPM reports for FEHB enrollees. It is not a simple average of the percentage changes in each plan option. Counting every option equally gives a lower number: the average change in the enrollee share across the 117 plan options is 6.5% at Self Only, 7.6% at Self Plus One and 6.9% at Self and Family. Giving each plan option and enrollment type equal weight, the average enrollee-share increase was about 16% for nationwide fee-for-service plans and 5.5% for regional health maintenance organization (HMO) plans. The rate files carry no enrollment figures, so they cannot reproduce OPM’s program-wide average on their own.

Direction can also depend on enrollment type. At least nine plan options got cheaper for some enrollment types and more expensive for others. Kaiser Permanente Northwest High Option, for example, costs $22.78 less per pay period at Self Plus One but $8.40 more at Self and Family.

Plan names in the tables follow OPM’s labels. The abbreviations are Government Employees Health Association (GEHA), Mail Handlers Benefit Plan (MHBP), Special Agents Mutual Benefit Association (SAMBA), American Postal Workers Union (APWU), consumer-driven health plan (CDHP), fee-for-service (FFS) and point of service (POS). State listings identify general availability; regional plans may serve only selected counties or ZIP codes within those states.

Self Only: the 20 Plans That Cost Less

The largest Self Only reduction is M.D. IPA High Option in the District of Columbia, Maryland and Virginia, down $2,626.00 a year. Geisinger Health Plan’s two Pennsylvania options and Health Alliance Plan’s High Option in Michigan also fall by more than $1,500 a year.

Self Plus One: the 22 Plans That Cost Less

Self Plus One has the most plans with lower premiums. Geisinger Health Plan Standard leads at $5,241.86 a year, and the top five all save more than $2,600 a year compared with their 2026 premiums.

Self and Family: the 21 Plans That Cost Less

M.D. IPA High Option in the District of Columbia, Maryland and Virginia saves a Self and Family enrollee $7,242.30 a year compared with 2026, the largest drop in any enrollment type.

These savings compare 2027 with the same plan’s 2026 enrollee share. They show the premium reductions for people already enrolled in these plans. Savings from switching depend on the difference between the enrollee’s current plan and the alternative being considered.

Who Got Hit Hardest

The largest dollar increases land on a mix of national fee-for-service plans, including SAMBA, MHBP and GEHA Indemnity Benefit Plan, and several Aetna and Medical Mutual of Ohio options. The tables rank plan options by annual dollar increase, and the last column shows the 2027 premium gap between each plan and Compass Rose Health Plan Standard Option, which OPM identifies as the lowest-cost nationwide FEHB option for 2027.

Self Only, eight largest increases:

Self Plus One, eight largest increases:

Self and Family, eight largest increases:

By percentage, the steepest increase is MHBP Standard Option, up 63.1% at Self Only, 104.9% at Self Plus One and 83.7% at Self and Family. The Foreign Service Benefit Plan High Option follows at 43.2%, 66.4% and 54.1%. MHBP’s Value and Consumer options are ending for 2027, with enrollees moved to the Standard Option by default unless they select another plan during Open Season.

What Switching Could Save Per Year

The gap between plans can dwarf the year-over-year change. A Self Only enrollee in SAMBA High Option pays $8,033.48 a year in 2027, while Compass Rose Standard Option charges $1,795.04, a gap of $6,238.44. At Self and Family the same comparison is $19,309.68 against $4,307.94, a gap of $15,001.74. At Self Plus One the Compass Rose share is $3,949.14 a year.

Those gaps cover premiums only, and Compass Rose is one example of a low-premium option. Enrollees should check benefits, provider networks, prescription coverage and any applicable membership requirements before deciding whether it fits their needs. The last column of each table above gives the same premium comparison for the other plans.

Two-Person Households Should Compare Both Enrollment Types

Enrollees covering themselves and one eligible family member can choose either Self Plus One or Self and Family. In some plans, Self and Family has the lower premium, even though only two people need coverage.

MHBP Standard Option is one example for 2027. Its enrollee share is $442.77 biweekly for Self Plus One and $400.78 for Self and Family. Choosing Self and Family would reduce premiums by $41.99 per pay period, or $1,091.74 over 26 pay periods. Retirees paying monthly would see a slightly different annual figure because of rounding.

In the 2027 rate files, 39 FEHB plan options have a Self Plus One share above the Self and Family share, and OPM links a chart of these plans on its premiums page. Two-person households should compare both enrollment types as part of their Open Season review, even if they intend to stay in the same plan.

Premium Is Not Total Cost

A lower premium does not mean lower spending. The comparison leaves out several costs and coverage features that differ from plan to plan:

• Deductibles, copayments, coinsurance and the annual out-of-pocket maximum
• Prescription drug tiers and which medications are covered
• Provider networks and service areas, including whether current doctors and hospitals participate
• Health savings or reimbursement account features on high-deductible and consumer-driven options
• Coordination with Medicare for retirees and family members who are enrolled
• Any applicable association or membership dues

A plan with a lower premium can leave an enrollee spending more overall in a year with heavy medical use. Plan brochures and OPM’s plan comparison tool, which OPM says will be available in early November, are the places to check coverage before making a choice.

Plans Leaving for 2027

OPM’s 2027 Open Season highlights list nine FEHB plan options and one Postal Service Health Benefits (PSHB) plan that will not be available next year. OPM’s FEHB and PSHB significant events tables provide the affected enrollment codes and service areas. The FEHB options are:

• Independent Health Standard and Independent Health high-deductible health plan (HDHP), Western New York
• Blue Care Network of Michigan High Option
• UnitedHealthcare Choice Primary High Option and Choice Plus Primary High Option, Arizona, Nevada, Oregon and Washington
• Health Net of California Northern High Option
• Health Net of California Southern High, Standard and Basic options

The terminating PSHB plan is UnitedHealthcare Choice Plus Primary Postal East. The UnitedHealthcare Choice Plus Primary West option leaving FEHB continues in PSHB as Postal West. Other options are ending within plans that continue, including MHBP’s Value and Consumer options in FEHB, whose enrollees will move to Standard unless they make another election.

Open Season runs November 9 through December 14, 2026, and enrollees in a terminating plan need to pick a new plan during that window. Anyone who does not will be placed automatically in the default plan OPM has designated: Compass Rose Health Plan Standard Option for FEHB and the Blue Cross and Blue Shield Service Benefit Plan’s Federal Employee Program (FEP) Blue Focus option for PSHB.

OPM identifies each default as the lowest-cost nationwide option for its program. Compass Rose Standard Option costs $69.04 biweekly at Self Only, $151.89 at Self Plus One and $165.69 at Self and Family. Automatic enrollment can place someone in a plan with a different network, prescription drug list or cost-sharing structure. Enrollees in terminating plans should compare alternatives before December 14 so they understand how their coverage will change. The FEHB Open Season page covers the dates and the steps.

Postal Enrollees

PSHB enrollees have their own rate tables, and OPM’s 10.9% average applies to FEHB.

Counting distinct enrollment-code groups in the PSHB rate files produces 72 groups with comparable year-over-year rates. Of those, 15 cost less at Self Only, 14 at Self Plus One and 12 at Self and Family, with three unchanged in each enrollment type. This count reflects the code groups used in the rate analysis; OPM separately reports 65 PSHB plan options for 2027.

Where to Check the Rates

The 2027 FEHB premium rates page has the full plan-by-plan rates, and the premiums and pay raise article shows how the increase compares with the proposed pay freeze. OPM publishes the official tables on its premiums page, and the Open Season page has the enrollment resources.