The Office of Personnel Management said that this year’s Federal Benefits Open Season will take place as scheduled despite COVID-19.
OPM acknowledged, however, that “this may be a uniquely challenging Open Season” and said that in-person benefit fairs that agencies may have held in the past could be impacted.
“Consider other ways to provide information to employees such as virtual events, webcasts, or webinars. We have also encouraged health plans to consider additional methods to provide information about Open Season to their enrollees and others,” OPM said in a recent benefits administration letter.
Open Season this year runs from Monday, November 9, 2020 through Monday, December 14, 2020. During this period, federal employees have the opportunity to enroll, change plans or plan options, change enrollment type, or cancel enrollment for the Federal Employees Health Benefits (FEHB) Program and the Federal Employees Dental and Vision Insurance Program (FEDVIP) as well as enroll/re-enroll in the Federal Flexible Spending Account (FSAFEDS) Program.
The Federal Employees’ Group Life Insurance (FEGLI) Program and the Federal Long Term Care Insurance Program (FLTCIP) do not participate in the annual Federal Benefits Open Season.
One new change this year to be aware of: there are 10 new plan options available under the Federal Employees Dental and Vision Insurance Program from which to choose.
Federal employees with benefits questions should contact their agency’s benefits officers for assistance.
2020 Federal Benefits Open Season Options