ice of Personnel Management recently released new guidance on the new Self Plus One enrollment type.
The memo, Federal Employees Health Benefits (FEHB) Program: Self Plus One Operational Issues, contained an interesting caveat for federal employees who plan to retire at the end of 2015: use a paper form to make open enrollment changes.
According to OPM:
Employees who plan to retire at the end of 2015 should be discouraged from using electronic enrollment systems to make any Open Season changes. Instead, agency HR representatives should include a paper Standard Form (SF) 2809 in the retirement paperwork of individuals retiring during the time period from the end of Open Season 2015 until the first day of the first pay period of 2016 who wish to make an Open Season change.
The memo also covered facts you should know with regards to switching a covered family member under the new Self Plus One enrollment option. There are certain situations under which the enrollee may and may not switch the covered family member.
For example, one situation presented in the memo in which an enrollee may not switch a covered family member is when the enrollee is under Self Plus One and covers his or her spouse but then adopts a child. This would have to be covered under Self Plus Family.
Other items covered in the memo include Qualifying Life Events (QLEs) that occur after open enrollment but before January 1, 2016 and children’s equity and changes to Self Plus One.
See the complete memo below for details.
