Federal retirees and other annuitants can change their health plan between November 9 and December 14, 2026, during the yearly open season run by the Office of Personnel Management (OPM). For 2027, OPM lists the average total premium for self-only Federal Employees Health Benefits (FEHB) coverage at $1,059.39 a month. That number is the full price of the coverage, with the government’s share and the enrollee’s share added together, so it is far larger than what a retiree pays out of an annuity. The gap between the two is where the choice of plan counts the most.
The November 9 to December 14 window
Anyone covered by an FEHB plan can switch plans, move between self-only, self plus one and family coverage, or drop coverage during the window, including retirees whose premiums come out of a monthly annuity. OPM says enrollment closes at 11:59 p.m. Eastern time on Monday, December 14, 2026, with the FEHB and Postal Service cutoff set by the location of the electronic enrollment system. For a retiree the question is which plan costs the least once the 2027 rates apply, and the answer depends on the plan far more than on the national average.
OPM publishes the 2027 premium tables once a year, and the $1,059.39 self-only average is the number every plan gets measured against.
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OPM’s 2027 open season highlights also list smaller changes that catch households off guard. Anyone adding a new family member to an FEHB or PSHB plan must now submit supporting documents proving the person’s eligibility. Participation in the flexible spending program FSAFEDS does not carry over automatically, so current participants who want it in 2027 must sign up again, and a Visa card for health care accounts is new. Dental premiums rise an average of 1.0 percent and vision premiums 1.6 percent.
Nine FEHB plans are not available in 2027, among them Independent Health Standard and HDHP and several Blue Care Network, UnitedHealthcare and Health Net of California plans. OPM says enrollees in a plan that is ending must pick a new one during open season or be placed automatically in the Compass Rose Standard plan. That default is assigned whether or not it fits a member’s doctors or budget.
What the $1,059.39 average includes
OPM’s program-wide weighted average premiums for 2027 are $1,059.39 a month for self-only coverage, $2,309.71 for self plus one and $2,539.27 for self and family. Each figure averages every plan, weighted by how many people are enrolled, and counts the government’s contribution and the enrollee’s contribution together. It describes the program as a whole and is not a bill that any single retiree receives.
The government’s maximum contribution is set at 72 percent of those averages, which works out to $762.75 a month for self-only coverage, $1,662.98 for self plus one and $1,828.28 for family coverage. Subtracting the self-only maximum from the self-only average leaves $296.64 a month for the enrollee in a plan priced exactly at the average. Few plans are priced exactly there, so the real deduction rises or falls with the plan chosen.
OPM puts the overall average premium increase for 2027 at 9.3 percent, down from 10.2 percent in 2026. Enrollees’ own share rises faster, by an average of 10.9 percent, because the government’s contribution grows by 8.6 percent. A retiree with a fixed annuity feels that gap directly, since the larger share comes out of the same check.
How far plan prices spread apart
The averages hide wide swings from plan to plan. Federal Pension Advisors, a retirement planning firm that specializes in federal benefits, tabulated 2027 self-only rates paid biweekly by employees. Blue Cross and Blue Shield Standard is $204.65, up 8.7 percent, GEHA High is $168.01, down 14.0 percent, and the MHBP Standard is $153.11, up 63.1 percent. Across 117 self-only plan entries the median change is 5.9 percent.
Retirees pay monthly instead, with the premium taken from the annuity in place of a paycheck. The firm puts the Blue Cross Standard Option self-only premium for annuitants at $443.41 a month, about $5,321 a year. Employee rates and annuitant rates are different charts, so a retiree comparing plans needs the monthly annuitant column and not the biweekly one.
Households on self plus one face larger swings. The firm lists the MHBP Standard self plus one increase at $226.65 biweekly, about $5,893 a year for an employee, while the Blue Cross Standard self plus one increase is $39.01 biweekly. A plan that holds its price in one enrollment type can still jump in another.
Comparing plans before the December 14 cutoff
OPM’s open season page lists the FEHB Plan Comparison Tool, a separate tool for dental and vision plans under FEDVIP, the FSAFEDS program and the public use files behind the premium tables. The dental and vision window closes at the same 11:59 p.m. Eastern deadline on December 14. The tool is the place OPM points enrollees to for putting plans side by side before the cutoff.
The 2027 tables put the average self-only plan at $1,059.39 a month and the government’s ceiling at $762.75. A plan priced well above the average leaves the annuitant covering more of the difference, and a plan priced well below it can cost far less, which is why the 2027 increases of 63.1 percent at one plan and a 14.0 percent cut at another matter more to a household than the program average.
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- The New $6,000 Senior Deduction and 15 More Tax Moves for Retirees
This article was researched and drafted with the assistance of AI and reviewed by The Money Overview editorial team.
