![]() The Center for the Study of Services (CSS), the publisher of Consumers’ Checkbook and the Guide to Health Plans for Federal Employees, is a nonprofit 501(c)(3) organization that was founded in Washington D.C. Print books will be mailed the week prior to the start of Open Season. The Guide will be released online no later than the first day of Open Season November 9 th. Federal Retirement readers can pre-order the Guide at and save 20% by entering promo code FEDRETIRE at checkout. The Guide is available in print and online formats. Hint: If you have low dental expenses you might be better off in a FEHB plan that offers some dental benefits vs paying a FEDVIP premium. The Checkbook Guide will show you how all your available choices stack up under low, average, or high dental expense years. Also, some FEHB plans offer dental and vision discount programs as part of their “Non-FEHB” benefits. Remember that some FEHB plans offer modest dental and vision benefits that don’t require you to pay a separate premium. The standalone FEDVIP plans are good buys for many, but not all. Consider your dental and vision needs.Make sure to check the plan brochure for that benefit to see additional information. If there is a benefit that is important to you, check that benefit in the Checkbook Guide to see which plans give you the best deal. Retirees should go to Section 9 to see if there are any Medicare coordination changes in your current plan. They are long and not fun to go through, but they offer the clearest view of what life is like in a plan. For retirees, there are new Medicare Advantage plans offered by some FEHB plans that reimburse almost the entire Medicare Part B premium and waive all doctor and hospital expenses. They may simply reflect the expensive enrollees they attract. Remember, higher premium plans do not mean better benefits. There are High Deductible plans (HDHP) with health reimbursement arrangements that can provide big savings and that have terrific catastrophic coverage. Check to see if there are newer plan choices that might be better buys.Even if you don’t anticipate switching plans, it makes sense to see how your plan has changed every Open Season. An expensive drug may no longer be on formulary. Certain benefits may be added or taken away. The premium almost certainly will change. Here are some important tips to consider as the 2021 FEHB Open Season approaches: By doing so, we’re able to show users which plans coordinate best with Medicare, the cost reduction size of adding Medicare Part B, and whether the FEHB plan offers Medicare Part B premium rebates. For retirees, we provide a yearly cost estimate for every FEHB plan with Medicare Part A only and a separate estimate for the FEHB plans with Medicare Parts A and Parts B. You’ll see which plans will save you the most money or which will provide the most coverage. By asking you a few questions about yourself and your family, the Guide provides a personalized total cost estimate for each plan which is the premium plus expected out-of-pocket for someone like you. For 42 years, Consumers’ Checkbook has published our annual Guide to Health Plans for Federal Employees to help active and retired federal employees find the best FEHB plan for them. Start slow and work up to flossing every day.The 2021 FEHB Open Season runs from November 9 th through December 14 th. If you don't like the feel of flossing, try different types of flosses or flossing tools. Have your floss, or flossers placed in a highly visible place. Specifically, think about how you can make flossing easier and/or more convenient. ![]() How does this relate to dental care? We all know that flossing is going to prevent decay, keep your teeth and smile looking young as you age, prevent your teeth from falling out, prevent gum recession, expensive dental bills, and pain - so trick your brain into making it an effortless routine that you perform on autopilot. ![]() As the author says, you can build a system to get 1% better every day. ![]() It's a great read and I highly recommend it for anyone looking to improve their lives in any way. Have you heard about the book, Atomic Habits, An Easy & Proven Way to Build Good Habits & Break Bad Ones? The author, James Clear, does a great job of simplifying the process of building a new, healthy habit. ![]()
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