Employee Benefits - NIH Benefits Information - Did You Know? June 2008
What’s New?
Topics Of Interest:
- If I Have Prior Military Service, Do I Need To Pay A Deposit To Receive Credit For Retirement Purposes?
- Can I Continue My Federal Employees Health Benefits (FEHB) And Federal Employees Group Life Insurance (FEGLI) Coverage Into Retirement?
- If I Get Married, What Changes Can I Make To My Benefits?
- Can I Have A Dual Enrollment In The Federal Employees Health Benefits (FEHB) Program?
- How Can I View My Thrift Savings Plan (TSP) Account Information?
- Can I Make Thrift Savings Plan (TSP) Catch-Up Contributions At Any Time?
- Why Do I Need A myPay PIN?
Where Do I Go If I Have Questions About My Benefits?
1. BENEFITS CALENDAR OF EVENTS
2. IF I HAVE PRIOR MILITARY SERVICE, DO I NEED TO PAY A DEPOSIT TO RECEIVE CREDIT FOR RETIREMENT PURPOSES?
If you performed active duty military service after December 31, 1956 (after June 30, 1960, in the PHS Commissioned Corps), you may need to pay a deposit (including interest) to DFAS prior to retirement in order to receive retirement credit for the military service.
If you are covered by the Civil Service Retirement System (CSRS) or CSRS-Offset, and employed on a CSRS-covered Federal appointment prior to 10/1/82, active duty service is creditable without a deposit. However, if you are eligible for a Social Security benefit at age 62 (or at retirement if you retire after age 62), the active duty credit will be removed or not used in calculating your retirement benefit unless you pay a deposit. If you were employed on a CSRS-covered Federal appointment on or after 10/1/82, active duty service is creditable only if a deposit is paid.
If you are covered by the Federal Employees Retirement System (FERS), active duty military service is creditable only if a deposit is paid.
For further information, please get in touch with the Benefits Contact for your IC.
3. CAN I CONTINUE MY FEDERAL EMPLOYEES HEALTH BENEFITS (FEHB) AND FEDERAL EMPLOYEES GROUP LIFE INSURANCE (FEGLI) COVERAGE INTO RETIREMENT?
You may continue your FEHB coverage (OPM) after you retire if you meet the following conditions: 1) you retire on an immediate annuity; AND 2) you have been enrolled in FEHB (or covered as a family member) for at least the last five years of service immediately preceding retirement. You may continue your FEGLI coverage (OPM) after you retire if you meet all of the following conditions: 1) you retire on an immediate annuity; 2) you have been insured for at least the last five years of service immediately preceding retirement; AND 3) you do not convert to an individual policy.
4. IF I GET MARRIED, WHAT CHANGES CAN I MAKE TO MY BENEFITS?
If you already have a self and family enrollment under the Federal Employees Health Benefits (FEHB) Program and you wish to continue with the same health plan, you should contact your health plan directly to have your spouse added. If you don’t have a self and family enrollment or you want to switch plans, complete a Health Benefits Election Form, SF-2809 (pdf). Your completed SF-2809 must be received in the Benefits & Payroll Liaison Branch within 31 days prior to the date of marriage or within 60 days after the date of your marriage. However, if you want your spouse covered on the date of the marriage, you must submit your SF-2809 the pay period prior to the anticipated date of the marriage. As supporting documentation, you must also provide a copy of your marriage certificate. Please note that the copy of the marriage certificate may follow the submission of the SF-2809.
If you already have basic life insurance coverage, you may elect Option B and/or Option C, or increase your multiples of Option B and/or Option C by completing a Life Insurance Election form, SF-2817 (pdf). For Option B, the multiples you are allowed to elect or increase by are limited to the number of eligible family members you are gaining.For Option C, you may elect up to 5 multiples, regardless of the number of eligible family members you are gaining. Your completed SF-2817 must be received in the Benefits & Payroll Liaison Branch within 60 calendar days after the date of your marriage. You must also provide a copy of your marriage certificate. If you don’t have basic life insurance and want to enroll, you must get a physical exam at your own expense. For information, speak with your Benefits Contact.
If you have supplemental dental and/or vision insurance and want to add your spouse, contact BENEFEDS at 1-877-888-FEDS within 60 days after the date of your marriage. To enroll or increase the amount of your Flexible Spending Account, contact FSA at 1-877-FSA-FEDS 31 days before to 60 days after the date of your marriage. To apply for Long Term Care, contact LTC Partners at 1-800-LTC-FEDS.
If you have filed designation of beneficiary forms, make sure your designations are up to date. You may review your records on-line by accessing your electronic Official Personnel Folder (eOPF). Designation of beneficiary forms may be completed for unpaid compensation, life insurance, retirement (CSRS or FERS), and the Thrift Savings Plan. You must have your beneficiary forms signed by two witnesses. Please note that a witness is not eligible to receive payment as a beneficiary. The unpaid compensation, life insurance, and the FERS forms should be forward to the Benefits & Payroll Liaison Branch. The CSRS and TSP forms should be mailed to the address indicated on each form. If you are satisfied with the Order of Precedence (OPM) as set by law, you do not need to take any action.
The Benefits & Payroll Liaison Branch is located at 31 Center Drive, Bldg 31, Rm B3C23, MSC 2215, Bethesda, MD 20892-2215. (Note: NIEHS employees located in North Carolina should submit their forms to Donna Fisher, Mail Stop Code NH-01, Room 258.) If you have questions, please notify your Benefits Contact.
5. CAN I HAVE A DUAL ENROLLMENT IN THE FEDERAL EMPLOYEES HEALTH BENEFITS (FEHB) PROGRAM?
No. Dual enrollment in FEHB is prohibited (OPM), except under very limited circumstances. Dual enrollment is when you or an eligible family member under your self and family enrollment is covered under more than one FEHB enrollment. For circumstances where dual enrollment is allowed, it must be authorized by the Benefits & Payroll Liaison Branch and will only be allowed when you or an eligible family member would otherwise lose coverage. For further information, please get in touch with the Benefits Contact for your IC.
6. HOW CAN I VIEW MY THRIFT SAVINGS PLAN (TSP) ACCOUNT INFORMATION?
You may view your TSP account by accessing the TSP web site and clicking on Account Access. The Account Access (TSP) section allows you to view your account balance and request certain transactions. Please note that if you wish to change, stop, or start your TSP contributions, you must use myPay (DFAS) and you may do so at any time since there are no longer TSP open seasons.
7. CAN I MAKE THRIFT SAVINGS PLAN (TSP) CATCH-UP CONTRIBUTIONS AT ANY TIME?
In addition to regular TSP contributions, you may also make TSP Catch-up contributions (TSP) at any time , if you meet the following criteria: 1) you are age 50 or over (or will be age 50 during 2008), 2) you are in pay status, AND 3) you are contributing an amount towards your regular TSP which will cause you to reach the $15,500 IRS limit by the end of the 2008 calendar year. The 2008 IRS limit for Catch-up contributions remains at $5,000. Unlike regular TSP elections, a Catch-up election is only valid for one year. Therefore, if you want to make Catch-up contributions each year, you must make a new election each year. To make a Catch-up election for 2008, you may make your election at any time by using myPay (DFAS). When making your election, enter the amount you want deducted from your pay each pay period. If you have questions, please notify your Benefits Contact.
8. WHY DO I NEED A myPAY PIN?
It is very important to have access to your myPay account so that you can view your Leave and Earnings Statement each pay day. You must also use myPay to make changes to your home address, TSP contributions, direct deposit of pay, allotments, and Federal and state tax withholdings. Additionally, all open season health insurance elections must be accomplished using myPay. If you have misplaced your myPay PIN, you may request a new one in one of two ways. One of which is by selecting “New Pin” on the myPay (DFAS) web site. Please make sure you use the “Go” button to finalize your request. Using this method your PIN will be mailed to your current address of record within 7 to 10 business days.
If you need it sooner, your second option is to send a fax to 216-367-3549. You will need to include in your request your name, a daytime phone number, and a copy of your NIH ID, and you must sign the fax. Upon receiving your fax, the Defense Finance & Accounting Service (DFAS) will reset your PIN using the last 5 numbers of your SSN as your temporary PIN. You will then be able to log in within 3 days using your temporary PIN. Upon logging in, you will be prompted to reset your PIN.
If you encounter problems with your PIN or technical issues using myPay (DFAS), contact the DFAS Centralized Customer Support Unit toll-free at 1-888-332-7411. This support line is available Monday through Friday, 7:00 A.M. to 7:30 P.M. Eastern Standard Time. The Centralized Customer Support Unit can provide assistance on how to use the options available to you in myPay. The Centralized Customer Support Unit will also provide support for establishing and changing your PIN.
9. HOW CAN I GET IN TOUCH WITH MY BENEFITS CONTACT?
Your contact in the Benefits and Payroll Liaison Branch will be able to help you with a variety of issues pertaining to the health and life insurance programs, designating beneficiaries, the Thrift Savings Plan (TSP), calculating your retirement annuity estimate, working with you to pay a redeposit for prior civilian service if you previously withdrew your retirement funds, paying a deposit for prior civilian or military service for which retirement deductions were not withheld, etc. To find your benefits contact, review our list of contacts. In addition, the Benefits and Payroll Liaison Branch (BPLB) web site has a wealth of information regarding your Federal benefits. Human resource topics not related to your benefits are normally handled by your Client Services Division HR Representative.
