Whatever you are doing today, imagine this scenario.

Suppose just before your Thanksgiving gala begins, your mate, significant other or best friend says after dinner you two need to have THE TALK! Leaping giblets, that sounds bad, right?

But like so many things we dread, it turns out to be important, but not as ominous as we feared. In this case, the lets-talk-turkey alert involves your federal health plan. The open enrollment season ends Dec. 13, so you still have plenty of time to shop. And in most cases plenty of reasons. Starting with the physical and financial health of you, your family or anyone under your plan.

There is a good chance that the plan you’ve been in for years, which has served you well, isn’t your best/smart buy. Plans and premiums change a lot. So does the population of that plan. And if it’s a high-option, odds are it has lots of older, sicker members. And that drives prices up. The experts say many people can save a ton by switching to a less expensive plan. Or the basic or standard option of their current plan.

Since open season started, we’ve had a series of columns listing the best buys for feds, postal workers, retirees and their survivors. There will be more to come. And we’ll have health plan expert Walton Francis each Wednesday on Your Turn to talk about the different plans. And if you have some downtime today or tomorrow, get on your computer and check out some of those columns. And the website of the Consumers Checkbook Guide to Health Plans.

Do a little shopping now and save a bundle next year. And maybe get even better coverage.

Happy holiday. See you next week!

Nearly Useless Factoid

By Alazar Moges

A German man named Andre Ortolf holds the record for most mashed potatoes eaten in one minute at 1120 grams. He set the record in Augsburg, Germany on 30 November 2017.

Source: Guinness World Records

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