Benefits

  • Open Season, the time when federal employees and retirees can comb through more than 250 plans of the Federal Employees Health Benefits (FEHB) Program and make changes, kicks off today and runs through Dec. 9. Find some key pieces of information for the current Open Season and links to more information. Plus, benefits experts offer their three most important tips for Open Season.

    November 09, 2013
  • Do you have a colleague who is always so upbeat, so happy that it gets on your nerves? If so, there is a sure-fire way to make him or her lose that grin, Senior Correspondent Mike Causey says.

    November 07, 2013
  • As part of our open season coverage, host Mike Causey will talk with Mike Davis, president and chief operating officer of Dominion Dental Services, and Andy Medici from the Federal Times will bring us up to date on issues affecting feds and retirees. November 6, 2013

    November 06, 2013
  • Tony Vergnetti will host a roundtable discussion of open season and the options available for federal workers. November 1, 2013

    November 01, 2013
  • CBS MoneyWatch columnist Allan Roth will share investment strategies for the TSP, and Federal Times senior writer Sean Reilly will discuss what's ahead for federal workers and retirees. October 30, 2013

    October 30, 2013
  • The Social Security Administration announced Wednesday morning that the cost-of-living adjustment, or COLA, for 2014 will rise 1.5 percent.

    October 30, 2013
  • Hardship withdrawals shot up in the first few weeks of October and thousands more employees opted to shift their investments out of higher-risk areas and into the G Fund, TSP officials said at at the board's monthly meeting Monday. During the shutdown, some 8,200 participants requested hardship withdrawals, compared to 5,500 during the same period of time last year.

    October 28, 2013
  • When it comes to investing and saving for retirement, federal workers are at the head of the class. TSP average balances are fast-approaching the 6-figure mark.

    October 28, 2013
  • You work for Uncle Sam. You are young, healthy and immortal. Who needs health insurance? Well, you may be in for a surprise, Senior Correspondent Mike Causey says.

    October 25, 2013
  • Rep. Darrell Issa (R-Calif.) introduced a bill that would open up the federal health program to all Americans, but one federal employee union has come out to oppose it and benefits experts question how much it would cost.

    October 24, 2013
  • Financial planner Arthur Stein will discuss what you can do to protect your assets in the event of another government shutdown, and Sean Reilly will talk about the possibility of another shutdown, and what's ahead for feds. October 23, 2013

    October 23, 2013
  • NARFE's Jessica Klement and Federal Times senior writer Sean Reilly will talk about the government shutdown and its impact. October 16, 2013

    October 16, 2013
  • When it comes to cost-of-living adjustments for retirees, bigger is always better, right? Or is it? Either way, some changes may be coming in the way the government tracks inflation, Senior Correspondent Mike Causey says.

    October 16, 2013
  • The Federal Retirement Thrift Investment Board kicked off this week a multimillion-dollar plan to revamp the Thrift Savings Plan. The $2.3 million initiative, which was approved by board members last month, calls for TSP officials to broadly survey participants on the services and offerings they desire as well as how the TSP stacks up against other plans, including those in the private sector.

    October 15, 2013
  • Preliminary figures suggest next year's benefit increase will be roughly 1.5 percent, according to an analysis by The Associated Press. The increase will be small because consumer prices, as measured by the government, haven't gone up much in the past year.

    October 14, 2013