Mike Causey

Something To Smile About

Thanks to an extended benefits open season, feds who just learned they will have heavy medical costs this year still have time to set up a bigger tax-saving Fle...

Federal News Network Staff

January 14, 2009 4:00 am

3 min read

Are you in shock as to what happened to your Thrift Savings Plan account last year? Would you like some professional advice about how to ride out the current recession? And finally, could you use some good, money-saving news for a change.

Suppose you picked your 2009 federal benefits package before the dentist tells you that you are going to need an expensive crown sooner rather than later? You have a Flexible Spending Account to take care of uncovered medical items, but news of the crown means your FSA won’t be enough to cover it.

Your options are:

Grin and bear it.
Get a new dentist.
Pay the money.
Bump up the amount of your FSA for 2009.

Normally the 4th option (which is the best bet for most people) wouldn’t be possible. Once the benefits open season ends, you are stuck with your choice. Particularly when it comes to a benefit like the FSA.

But not this year.

Thanks to the extended health/benefits hunting season, feds can make changes in many things – from their health plan to the FSA account – through January 30th.

Translation:

If you signed up last December to have a $1,000 FSA for the 2009 year, and you suddenly find out you are going to need more money, you can increase your pre-tax payroll deductions to fund a bigger FSA. Maybe enough to pay for expensive things not covered, or not covered fully, by your health plan.

As soon as I heard of this I rushed to our benefits office asking if I could change the amount of money in my FSA account. I might use some of the money for surgery that would make me look even more like Robert Redford at his peak. The HR folks are still laughing!

But you don’t work here. You work there. And out there, in fedland, the open season that was supposed to end over a month ago is still open for purposes of belated enrollment.

Many financial planners and benefits experts say that having an FSA is, for most people, a no-brainer. It’s a way to save on taxes and pay for uncovered medically-related items and treatments not covered by your federal health plan.

Following the good news about the extension for the FSA signup, we’ll get some badly needed advice from John Bernards. He’s a financial planner who tracks the TSP for his government-military clients.

Whether your interest is FSAs, the TSP, or the status of new pro-fed bills in Congress, we will be happy to take your calls, or respond to e-mailed questions.

Listen in if you can. Call in (or e-mail me your question) if you like. The show is on from 10 to 11 am EST. You can get it worldwide on your computer at www.federalnewsradio.com, click the LISTEN LIVE icon, or in the Washington area at AM 1500 on your radio.

Meantime, there is still time to setup an FSA account for this year. For information, go to: www.fsafeds.com

Long Term Care – You can also still sign up for the coverage that will pay your bills if you are unable to take care of yourself because of an accident or illness. Just over 200,000 active and retired feds, and members of the uniformed military have LTC coverage through the federal program. Most experts agree that a lot more people than that number should have the coverage. To check out the federal LTC program go to: http://www.opm.gov/insure/ltc/index.asp

Nearly Useless Factoid

A person’s initials may influence the time and cause of death. According to California researchers as reported in Parade magazine, if your initials are “positive” like ACE, WIN, or WOW you’ll fare better than if they’re something negative like RAT, BUM, SAD, or DUD.

To reach me: mcausey@federalnewsradio.com