For every $100 you pay per pay period toward FEHB, a 10.9% premium increase adds $283.40 a year. A family-coverage enrollee paying $250 per pay period would owe an extra $708.50 over 26 pay periods. A retiree paying $400 a month would owe $523.20 more. Those figures come from the arithmetic, not from a published rate table. They're also why this year's open season deserves more than a skim.
The 10.9% figure comes from a FEDmanager report on the coming plan year. GovWire hasn't been able to confirm whether it's an average of total premiums, an enrollee-share figure, or something else. Your own increase depends on your plan, and some plans will land well above or below it. OPM's published rate tables are the final word.
By the Numbers
- 10.9%: the reported FEHB premium increase for the coming plan year
- $283.40: added annual cost for every $100 you pay per biweekly pay period
- $708.50: added annual cost for an enrollee paying $250 per pay period (illustrative)
- 72%: the share of the weighted-average premium the government pays, under 5 U.S.C. § 8906
- 75%: the cap on the government's share of any single plan's premium
- About 8 million: people covered by FEHB, including dependents, per OPM
- Roughly 4 weeks: typical length of open season, mid-November to mid-December
How the premium split works
FEHB is governed by 5 U.S.C. chapter 89, and OPM runs it. The money side lives in § 8906. The government pays 72% of the enrollment-weighted average premium across all participating plans, capped at 75% of any one plan's premium. You pay the rest.
People miss what follows from that. The government's dollar contribution is pegged to the average, not to your plan. If your plan's premium rises faster than the weighted average, the extra lands entirely on you. If it rises slower, you come out ahead. Two enrollees with the same coverage level can see very different increases because of the plan they picked.
Coverage levels matter too. Self Only, Self Plus One and Self and Family each carry their own premium. Plans differ in design as well: standard options with deductibles and copays, high-deductible plans paired with a health savings account, and plans limited to a geographic area or employee group.
How you pay depends on who you are:
- Active employees pay biweekly, 26 times a year, through payroll. Premium conversion under Internal Revenue Code § 125 takes the money out pre-tax, which lowers both income tax and FICA.
- Annuitants pay monthly, deducted from the annuity. Retirees generally don't get premium conversion, so they pay with after-tax dollars.
- Postal workers and retirees moved to the separate Postal Service Health Benefits (PSHB) program in 2025. It has its own plans and premiums. Don't assume an FEHB rate table applies to you.
Open season is when you can change plans, change coverage level, or enroll if you're eligible but not currently covered. Elections take effect at the start of the first pay period beginning on or after January 1 for employees, and January 1 for annuitants. Do nothing and you keep your current plan at the new rate.
A worked example
Dana is a GS-12 enrolled in a standard-option plan at Self Plus One. The numbers are illustrative. Swap in your own from your pay stub or the benefits section of your SF-50.
Step 1: Current cost. Dana pays $250 per pay period. That's $6,500 a year (250 × 26).
Step 2: Apply the increase. If her plan rises exactly 10.9%, her share goes up $27.25 per pay period to $277.25. Annual cost: $7,208.50. That's $708.50 more.
Step 3: Adjust for taxes. The premium is pre-tax, so Dana doesn't feel the full $708.50. Assume a 22% federal bracket and 7.65% FICA, and ignore state tax. Her take-home hit is closer to $498 (708.50 × 0.7035). Still real money, just less than the sticker.
Step 4: Test the alternative. Say a lower-cost plan with the same coverage level will cost her $210 per pay period after the increase. The gap against her current plan is $67.25 per pay period, or $1,748.50 a year before taxes.
Step 5: Check what you'd give up. The cheaper plan might carry a higher deductible or a narrower network. If its out-of-pocket maximum is $2,000 higher than her current plan's, she saves money only if her family doesn't have a bad year. The premium is a certain cost. The deductible is a possible one. Dana needs to look at her actual claims history, not just the rate sheet.
Who is affected, and by how much
Everyone enrolled, but not equally. This table shows the added annual cost if your share rises by exactly 10.9%:
| What you pay now | Added cost per year |
|---|---|
| $100 per pay period | $283.40 |
| $150 per pay period | $425.10 |
| $200 per pay period | $566.80 |
| $300 per pay period | $850.20 |
| $200 per month (retiree) | $261.60 |
| $400 per month (retiree) | $523.20 |
| $600 per month (retiree) | $784.80 |
Active employees with family coverage carry the largest dollar exposure, since Self and Family premiums are the highest. Pre-tax treatment softens the blow.
Retirees on fixed annuities get squeezed differently. FERS retirees receive COLAs, but the COLA formula under 5 U.S.C. § 8462 is smaller than CPI when inflation runs above 2%. CSRS retirees get the full adjustment. A $523 premium jump set against a COLA is a comparison worth making. Premiums come out after tax, so there's no cushion.
Medicare-eligible annuitants have an extra option. Many FEHB plans waive or reduce deductibles and copays for members who also have Medicare Parts A and B. Some retirees can justify a different plan than they'd choose without Medicare. Part B has its own premium, and that's a separate decision.
Survivor annuitants generally pay the way retirees do and face the same math.
Postal employees and retirees should check PSHB rates. The 10.9% figure may not apply to them. The FEDmanager report was described as covering FEHB, and the GovWire team couldn't verify the PSHB picture.
Low-premium plan enrollees may see smaller increases, or may already benefit from the 75% cap on the government's share. Rate sheets show it plainly.
How to estimate your own
You need three numbers: your current biweekly or monthly premium, your plan's new premium from OPM's rate tables, and your realistic annual out-of-pocket spend. Subtract old from new and multiply by 26 or 12. That's your premium change. Then compare alternatives on total cost, which is premium plus expected claims. A plan with a lower premium can cost more overall if you use a lot of care.
The FEHB value guide lets you plug in your own premium and compare what the benefit is worth against what you pay. Run your current plan and two alternatives. If the gap is under a couple hundred dollars a year, the benefit differences usually matter more than the price.
Read the plan brochure, not the marketing page. OPM requires every plan to publish a standardized brochure with deductibles, coinsurance, out-of-pocket maximums, and what's covered. The Summary of Benefits section is the fastest read.
FAQ
Is 10.9% what I'll pay? Not necessarily. The reported figure may be an average across plans, and the actual change for your plan could be higher or lower. Your final number is in OPM's premium tables for your plan, coverage level, and enrollee category.
What happens if I do nothing during open season? You stay in your current plan at the new premium. No form required. That's why open season is easy to ignore, and expensive to ignore.
Can I drop FEHB to avoid the increase? You can cancel, but think hard first. To carry FEHB into retirement, you generally must have been continuously enrolled for the five years before retiring (5 U.S.C. § 8905(b)). Dropping coverage mid-career can cost you the benefit for life. Re-enrolling outside open season requires a qualifying life event.
Can I change plans outside open season? Only with a qualifying life event, such as marriage, divorce, birth or adoption of a child, or loss of other coverage. Enrollees can also switch if their plan leaves the program or their service area changes. Otherwise you wait for the next open season.
Does the increase also hit the HSA and dental or vision plans? No. FEDVIP dental and vision and FSAFEDS are separate programs with their own enrollment and pricing. High-deductible FEHB plans with an HSA do carry the premium change, but the HSA itself is a separate account.
Bottom line
A 10.9% increase turns a $250-per-pay-period premium into roughly $708.50 more per year, and about $523 more for a retiree paying $400 a month. The government pays 72% of the weighted average under § 8906, so how much of an increase lands on you depends on how your plan's premium moves against that average.
Open season is the one window where you can respond. Pull your plan's new rate, compare it with two others, and weigh premium against deductible and out-of-pocket maximum. A few minutes with the brochures can be worth a four-figure difference over the plan year.