Healthcare & Insurance Insurance FAQs

 If you are a Federal ANNUITANT or compensationer: OPM's Retirement Office is the only office with access to your FEGLI life insurance records.  There are three ways to access your FEGLI coverage information: 1. Log on to Retirement Services Online to view and print a Verification of Life Insurance (VOLI).  Your VOLI will show which types of FEGLI coverage you have, your amount of coverage before reduction, your post-65 reductions, and your amount of coverage after reductions complete. 2. Email retire@opm.gov to request that your VOLI be mailed to you.  Be sure to include your retirement claim number (CSA/CSF) in your email. 3. Call 1-888-767-6738 to request that your VOLI be mailed to you.  The phone lines are open Monday through Friday 7:40 am to 5:00 pm eastern time. The phone lines can get extremely busy so we recommend calling early in the morning or late in the evening when the lines are less busy. Have your retirement claim number (CSA/CSF) or social security number handy. Your FEGLI beneficiary records are not available online.  If you wish to change your FEGLI life insurance beneficiaries, complete this form and mail it to OPM's Retirement Office at the address on page 3: www.opm.gov/forms/pdf_fill/sf2823.pdf If you are a Federal EMPLOYEE: Contact your human resources office.  The office that maintains your Official Personnel Folder (OPF) or its equivalent is the only office with access to your FEGLI life insurance records. If you do not know what office that is or how to contact them, check with your supervisor. You can also look on a copy of your most recent Standard Form 50, Notification of Personnel Action, to determine the coverage you currently have:

1. In Block 27 on that form, there is a 2-character code that represents your current coverage and a definition of the code. 
2. You can look up the SF50 codes and what they mean.
3. You can then use the FEGLI Calculator to determine the current value of your FEGLI by inputting your current age, salary and type(s) of FEGLI coverage. 

If you wish to change your FEGLI life insurance beneficiaries, complete this form and submit it to your human resources office: www.opm.gov/forms/pdf_fill/sf2823.pdf

If you are an annuitant, please contact the Retirement Office during Open Season via one of the following methods:  

• Using Open Season Express by calling 1-800-332-9798.
• Using OPM's Open Season Online system.
• Sending regular mail to:

Office of Personnel Management Open Season Processing Center P.O. Box 5000 Lawrence, KS 66046-0500 Additional details on enrolling in an FEHB plan for employees and annuitants can be found at https://www.opm.gov/healthcare-insurance/healthcare/enrollment/. If you are an active employee and you want to enroll in Self Plus One, please note that OPM does not process enrollments for Federal employees of other agencies. Your Human Resources Office can assist you. If your local Personnel office is unable to help you, you can contact your headquarters benefits counselor for further guidance.  OPM maintains a list of Benefits Officers which can be found at  http://apps.opm.gov/abo . Please visit this site, find your headquarters agency and the contact information will be listed.    

A Flexible Spending Account, or FSA, is an employee benefit program that allows you to set aside money, on a pre-tax basis, for certain health care and dependent care expenses. That means YOU keep MORE of your MONEY. FSAFEDS is the Federal Flexible Spending Account Program which is the FSA for most federal employees. FSAFEDS offers three types of accounts: Health Care FSA (HCFSA), which is used to pay for eligible medical, dental, and vision care expenses. Limited Expense Health Care FSA (LEX HCFSA), which is used to pay for qualified out-of-pocket dental and vision care expenses Dependent Care FSA (DCFSA), which is used to pay qualified out-of-pocket dependent care expenses The average FSAFEDS participant saves 30% on their eligible out-of-pocket expenses as a result of being enrolled. To find out more about FSAFEDS or to sign up, visit www.FSAFEDS.com.

A Self Only enrollment covers only the enrollee. A Self and Family enrollment covers the enrollee and all eligible family members. The new Self Plus One enrollment type covers the enrollee and one eligible family member you designate to be covered.

Open Season runs from Monday of the first full Federal pay period in November to the Monday of the first full Federal pay period in December. During this period, you may enroll, change, or cancel your FEHB, FEDVIP or FSAFEDS coverage.

When you die, the Office of Federal Employees' Group Life Insurance (OFEGLI) will pay life insurance benefits in a particular order, set by law:

• If you assigned ownership of your life insurance, OFEGLI will pay benefits in the following order of precedence: First, to the beneficiary(ies) designated by your assignee(s), if any;  Second, if there is no such beneficiary, to your assignee(s).
• If you did not assign ownership and there is a valid court order on file, OFEGLI will pay benefits in accordance with that court order.
• If you did not assign ownership and there is no valid court order on file, OFEGLI will pay benefits in the following order of precedence:
  • First, to the beneficiary(ies) you designated;
  • Second, if there is no such beneficiary, to your widow or widower;
  • Third, if none of the above, to your child or children, with the share of any deceased child distributed among descendants of that child (a court will usually have to appoint a guardian to receive payment for a minor child);
  • Fourth, if none of the above, to your parents in equal shares or the entire amount to your surviving parent;
  • Fifth, if none of the above, to the executor or administrator of your estate;
  • Sixth, if none of the above, to your other next of kin as determined under the laws of the State where you lived.

To designate new beneficiaries, submit a Designation of Beneficiary to your human resources office (or to OPM's Retirement Office if you are retired). If you would like to know who is listed in your current Designation of Beneficiary, follow these instructions. 

To continue your health benefits enrollment into retirement, you must: (1) have retired on an immediate annuity (that is, an annuity which begins to accrue no later than one month after the date of your final separation); and (2) have been continuously enrolled (or covered as a family member) in any FEHB Program plan (not necessarily the same plan) for the five years of service immediately preceding retirement, or if less than five years, for all service since your first opportunity to enroll.

A Self Plus One enrollment covers the enrollee and one designated eligible family member. The definition of eligible family  members has not changed. Your eligible family member can include either a spouse OR a child up to age 26. A child age 26 or over who is incapable of self-support because of a mental or physical disability that existed before age 26 is also an eligible family member.

No, you will pay the same premium as you paid while you were an employee. However, annuitants are paid on a monthly basis so you will pay them at the monthly rate. You may see an increase if you are employed by an agency, such as the Post Office, that contributes additional money towards the total premium. Retirees receive the same government contribution as most Federal employees.

The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) determines what are considered eligible expenses for all Flexible Spending Accounts. A listing of eligible expenses can be found on the FSAFEDS website at: https://www.fsafeds.com/Support/EligibleExpenses.