Browsing: spouse

Q. I am about ready to retire and currently maintain a FEHB policy. My wife is still working and I can fall under her health plan at no extra cost, and the coverage is better. I have been told that you can “suspend” FEHB in retirement and reinstate it if need be. Is this true? A. No, it isn’t true. About the only ones who can suspend coverage are those who are covered by the military’s Tricare program. And they can only re-enroll if they lose that coverage or during an open season.

Q. I was a term employee for one year and my term expired on Dec. 19. I was a GS-6 Step 7. I got an offer for a temporary position Jan. 11, but it comes with a $7,000 reduction in pay, and I was informed that it was management’s choice on whether to honor my previous salary. Can they do this? I am doing the same job that I was doing before, just for a different organization on the installation. My biggest concern is that I am disabled veteran over 30 percent, as well as on the spousal priority placement…

Q. I will be 66 years old in April. I have been with the Postal Service (FERS) for 16 years. I am eligible for retirement, but I am concerned about health insurance. I was always covered under my spouse’s insurance, since she started in the workforce before I did. I took on my own health insurance in January 2011 since she retired on disability due to medical complications. When I took on health insurance, I also covered for her health insurance. I know it has not been five years yet. What do I need to do to be eligible to…

Q. I retired from the federal government Oct. 3 at age 59. My husband, age 67, receives Social Security benefits. Since I carry him under my Federal Employees Health Benefits, he did not elect Medicare Part B when he began receiving the Social Security benefits. However, now that I am retired, does he have to sign up for Part B? I’ve also provided for a spousal annuity for him should I pass. My human resources office advised that if he does sign up, because I just retired, any penalty, etc., will be waived. I’ve been researching to try and understand…

Q. 1. Can someone switch from Blue Cross/Blue Shield to Medicare Part B at age 71? 2. Should it be done? 3. If yes, how can it be done, and what are the costs? I am 71 and self-employed (since 2011), covered under my wife’s federal Blue Cross/Blue Shield plan. My wife has been retired for a few years and she also turned 71 in 2012. My wife was just operated for a brain tumor and is being scheduled for radiation therapy and chemotherapy. A. While your wife could disenroll from the Federal Employees Health Benefits program and both of…

Q. I bought back my military time and will have 15 years (combined military/federal service) in 2013. I am under FERS. My husband has a rare form of cancer that has left him permanently disabled and his prognosis is unknown due to the rarity of the cancer. Is it possible for me to retire early — I am 49 — and keep my benefits so that I can take care of him? A. Unfortunately, no. The earliest you could retire would be at your minimum retirement age, which is 56. Even then, your annuity would be reduced by 5 percent…

Q. My husband and I work for the federal government. He plans to retire soon; however, I will continue working. The Request for Retirement Annuity Computation form asks if he wants to elect a survivor annuity for his spouse. The notes section immediately below this question states the following: “You must elect a survivor annuity for your spouse to be eligible to continue coverage under the Federal Employees Health Benefits (FEHB), unless your spouse is a federal employee with his/her own entitlement to FEHB.” This note has thrown me for an absolute loop. I don’t understand the correlation between my…

Q. My husband, who is retired from the Postal Service, turned 65 on Aug. 31. I am on his Blue Cross/Blue Shield and am still working full time at age 49. Now that he is 65, what does keeping the BC/BS health insurance cost per month? If he decides to go on Medicare, can I stay on this plan? A. When he enrolls in Medicare, his premiums will remain the same. However, because he is retired, Medicare will be primary and his Federal Employees Health Benefits plan secondary. You will continue to be covered by the self-and-family option of his…

Q. I am a FERS employee with 27 years of service at 56 years old. Because my spouse is ill, I will have to retire early (sometime this year) to take care of him. Do I get penalized the 5 percent? Do I get to keep health and life insurance? And do I receive the Social Security supplement? A. Because you would be retiring under the MRA+10 provision, your annuity would be reduced by 5 percent for every year you were under age 62 and you wouldn’t be eligible for the special retirement supplement. On the other hand, you would be…

Q: I understand that to be eligible to carry Federal Employees Health Benefits  coverage into retirement the individual must, have at least five years of consecutive coverage under the Federal Employee Health Benefits Program, or have been  covered since your first  opportunity to enroll. My question concerns a federal employee who is covered under their spouse’s FEHB. If the spouse dies, is the survivor still covered? A: If you were covered under the self and family option of an FEHB plan when your spouse died, you would continue to be covered.