Federal Employee Health Benefits Program ‘Open Season’ Begins, Likely to Feature ‘Sharp Competition’ Among Plans

The 2002 "open season" for the Federal Employees Health Benefits Program begins today and ends Dec. 10, and according to the Washington Post, "this open season may be marked by sharp competition" among FEHBP plans. Thirty-one HMOs will withdraw from FEHBP next year, and several plans, including Aetna and Prudential, will withdraw from some geographical areas. In addition, the BlueCross BlueShield Association, the largest FEHBP plan, will merge its "high option" and "standard option" plans and establish a new "basic option" plan. The Post reports that the changes will force about 150,000 federal employees and retirees to select new FEHBP plans, while many more enrollees will likely "feel pressured to do more comparison shopping because of steep premium increases." The Office of Personnel Management reports that FEHBP premiums will rise about 13.3% next year, with an "even higher" increase likely for "some popular plans." Walton Francis, FEHBP expert, said that "lots of people should consider switching" plans next year to save money. However, he urges federal employees and retirees to "read the page of their current plan's brochure that shows what benefits are changing" for 2002 and determine which plans their doctors accept. The Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality recommends that FEHBP enrollees "carefully consider" similar questions about cost and services "before making an enrollment decision" (Barr, Washington Post, 11/12).