Q. I am an EAS employee in FERS with 23 years of service at age 63. I have been enrolled self-only in the Federal Employees Health Benefits plan for 4½ years. Should I be terminated through a reduction in force, would I still be able to carry my coverage into retirement although I am short of the five-year enrollment requirement. I understand that there are certain exemptions to the five-year rule. I did not plan to retire until I reached 65.
A. You’d receive a pre-approved waiver of the five-year requirement because you would meet the criteria: You were covered under the FEHB program continuously since the beginning of your agency’s latest statutory early retirement authority, and you retired before the ending date of that authority.
