Insurance FAQs Health

Pay-As-You-Go Under the Pay-As-You-Go option, you pay your share of the FEHB premium directly to your employing agency while on LWOP. These payments will generally be made with after-tax monies, since there is no pay from which to make deductions.   Catch-Up Most employees who have a period of LWOP choose to pay their FEHB premiums via the Catch-up option. Under this option, the agency remits your share of the FEHB premium to OPM while you are on LWOP. You incur an obligation to your employing agency and are required to repay it upon your return to pay status. The repayment of the amount owed will be treated on a pre-tax basis, if it's deducted from pay and you participate in premium conversion at the time the deduction is made. If you choose to repay the amount owed to your agency directly out-of-pocket your taxable income is not reduced. Prepay Your agency may (but is not required to) offer you the option to prepay your FEHB premium from salary before you go on a period of LWOP. The amount of FEHB premiums you prepay in advance may either be deducted from your pay or paid directly "out-of-pocket" to your agency. Payments made "out-of-pocket" do not reduce taxable income. The amount of FEHB premiums that you prepay will be treated on a pre-tax basis, if it is deducted from your pay and you participate in premium conversion. IRS rules limit the amount you may prepay on a pre-tax basis. If your period of LWOP will span two tax years, the amount that you may prepay on a pre-tax basis may not exceed the amount of FEHB premiums due for the remainder of the current tax year. If you wish to prepay the amounts due for the subsequent tax year as well, the deductions must be made after-tax. You may use the "Pay-As-You-Go" or Catch-up options for amounts due in the subsequent tax year. Example Sam A. participates in premium conversion and had $100 per month in FEHB premiums deducted from his pay. He will go on LWOP for three months beginning on October 31, 2002 and opts to continue his FEHB coverage. Mr. A. uses the pre-pay option to pay from his salary the $300 in FEHB premium payments that will be due while he is on LWOP. Mr. A. will receive pre-tax treatment for only $200 of his FEHB premium prepayment- the amount he will owe for the months of November and December 2002. The remaining $100 prepaid – the amount due for January 2003 – must be given after-tax treatment.

Generally, your coverage continues for 36 months from the date of your divorce or annulment, as long as you pay your premiums on time. After your TCC enrollment ends:

• you get a 31-day extension of coverage, and
• you may convert to an individual contract offered by your health benefits plan,

unless you lose coverage because you canceled your enrollment or didn't pay your premiums.

The Help Desk:

• Tells you what transactions you can do (link to question #4) and how to do them using Employee Express;
• Gives numbers for the Employee Express phone system;
• Gives locations for touch screens (kiosks) and contacts for Human Resources Offices;
• Gives the Employee Express email address;
• Issues new PINs
• Automatically sends a verification letter to you for health benefits changes you make in Employee Express. (For paperwork on other changes, contact your Human Resources Office.)

Most health maintenance organizations (HMO) restrict enrollment to an area where its doctors and hospitals are accessible. Although some HMOs do not have restrictions on where you live or work, please recognize that if you later find it is inconvenient to get to a plan provider, you may have to wait until the next Open Season to change plans.

While you may count the time you are covered under transitional TRICARE toward meeting the 5 year/initial opportunity requirement to continue your FEHB into retirement, you must be covered under FEHB on the day you retire. If you plan to retire during your transitional TRICARE period, you must reinstate your FEHB before your retirement date. Your Human Resources Office can assist you.

You should obtain, complete and return a waiver/election form to your employing office. You may waive participation in premium conversion (or elect to participate, if you previously waived) during the annual FEHB Open Season. Also, you may have the opportunity to waive participation in premium conversion if you've experienced a Qualifying life event (QLE). Refer to the QLE section for more information. FEHB Open Season During the FEHB Open Season, you will have an opportunity to elect or waive your participation in premium conversion. An Open Season election to participate or waive participation in premium conversion must be received by your employing agency no later than the last day of the Open Season to be considered timely filed. The effective date of your election will be the same as the effective date of an FEHB enrollment election: the first payroll period that begins on or after January 1st. If your agency accepts and processes a late Open Season enrollment election, it must also accept a late election to participate or waive participation in premium conversion. Because elections begin with pay periods, when you change participation in premium conversion (begin or waive participation) during the FEHB Open Season, there will likely be at least one payroll paid date in the subsequent calendar year in which your FEHB deductions reflect the previous election. Example Mark G. had previously waived participation in premium conversion. He opted to participate again in premium conversion during the November 2002 Open Season. Mr. G. is paid on a biweekly basis, with the following payroll periods: Payroll Begin Date End Date Pay Date Pre-Tax/ After-tax 01 12/15/02 12/28/02 1/8/03 after-tax 02 12/29/02 1/11/03 1/22/03 after-tax 03 1/12/03 1/25/03 2/5/03 pre-tax Mr. Marks' payroll office would treat his FEHB deductions on an after-tax basis through the end of payroll period 02.

You must apply within 60 days of:

• the date your marriage ended, or
• the date the employing office notified you that your qualifying court order (or your former spouse's election) entitled you to coverage, whichever is later.

If you die, the Waiver of Immediate Reinstatement of FEHB automatically terminates. If you postponed reinstatement of a Self and Family enrollment, and your survivors are eligible for a survivor annuity, their FEHB coverage will begin the day after your death.

You must inform your Human Resources Office that you want to revoke your waiver during your final pay period. Your Human Resources Office will then reinstate your FEHB so that you will have an enrollment to continue under TCC or convert. If your leave and earnings statement for your final pay period does not show a withholding for an FEHB premium, contact your Human Resources Office immediately.

A qualifying life event (QLE) is a term defined by OPM to describe events deemed acceptable by the IRS that may allow participants in cafeteria plans (including premium conversion) to change their participation election for premium conversion outside of an open season. With two exceptions, the rules for changing FEHB enrollment outside of Open Season do not change. Most of the time, people make changes to their FEHB enrollment on account of and consistent with a qualifying life event. The opportunities for you to enroll or change enrollment described in 5 CFR Part 890, and described in the FEHB Employee Health Benefits Election Form (SF 2809) will continue to be allowed under premium conversion except:

• you may not cancel your enrollment at any time
• you may not change from Self and Family to Self Only at any time.

  You will still be allowed to make these changes to your enrollment if the change is on account of and consistent with a qualifying life event. The IRS has additional events that will allow you to change your participation (election) in premium conversion. Read on for more information.

FedFlex, The Federal Flexible Benefits Plan , is the name of OPM's cafeteria plan. In order to offer pre-tax benefits, OPM was required to create a plan document in accordance with IRS regulations that outlines the benefits and employee choices under that plan.

Yes, taxes in 49 states and most localities will be reduced; exceptions include the state of New Jersey and the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico. OPM monitors changes in state and local tax regulations, and provides guidance to your agency as needed. Regardless of where you live, FEHB premiums are not subject to Federal taxes. FICA Taxes If you are covered by the Federal Employees Retirement System (FERS) and participate in premium conversion, FEHB premium deductions will also be excluded from gross pay before Old-Age, Survivors, and Disability Insurance (OASDI) and Medicare taxes are applied. Employer FICA contributions will also be reduced in concert with the decrease in employee withholdings.

If you were unable to choose another plan during military service, your Human Resources Office should reinstate your old enrollment code (for enrollment history purposes only), give you an opportunity to change to another plan, and immediately process your change. To avoid any break in coverage, they should make your new enrollment effective on the date they would have reinstated your old enrollment.

During the fall of each year, you will receive a copy of the Medicare & You handbook. It is also available by calling 1-800-MEDICARE (1-800-633-4227) or TTY 1-877-486-2048, or at www.medicare.gov/publications/pubs/pdf/10050.pdf . The Medicare & You handbook has information on Medicare Parts A & B; Medicare Advantage Plans (Part C); Medicare Prescription Drug Coverage (Part D); Help for People with Limited Income and Resources; and Joining and Switching Plans. The Medicare website (www.medicare.gov) contains the handbook and other information about Medicare. If you do not have a personal computer, your local library or senior center may be able to help you access this website. You should contact your retirement system before making any change to your coverage, especially if you are considering suspending your FEHB coverage to enroll in a Medicare Advantage Plan. If you are a CSRS or FERS annuitant, you may call OPM's Retirement Information Office at 1-88USOPMRET (1-888-767-6738) or 202-606-0500 from the metropolitan Washington area, or you may write to:

Office of Personnel Management Retirement Operations Center P.O. Box 45 Boyers, PA 16017-0045

Other useful publications, such as the Guide to Health Insurance for People with Medicare, are also available at the Medicare number (1-800-633-4227) or from your State Health Insurance Assistance Program (SHIP) counseling office. The SHIP counselors in your state are also available by telephone or sometimes as a walk-in resource if you would like more personalized attention. You can find SHIP counseling office telephone numbers in the Medicare & You handbook or on the Medicare website at www.medicare.gov/contacts/static/allStateContacts.asp. Your FEHB plan brochure provides specific information on how its benefits are coordinated with Medicare. Some HMOs participating in the FEHB are structured to provide more comprehensive coverage if you enroll in both their HMO and their Medicare Advantage plan.