What happens if you do nothing during Open Season

What renews on its own

• FEHB. Same plan, same option, same enrollment type, at the 2027 premium.
• FEDVIP. Same dental and vision plans, at the new premium.

Nothing is cancelled for inaction, and no coverage lapses. That part of the system is forgiving.

What ends

FSAFEDS. Your flexible spending account stops on December 31. It is a fresh election every year, and there is no late enrolment. The details are here.

What changes without asking

Rolling over is not the same as staying still. Between one plan year and the next your plan can change:

• The premium, which moves every year.
• The deductible and the catastrophic limit.
• Copays and coinsurance for specialists, urgent care and emergency visits.
• The formulary, which decides what your prescriptions cost.
• The provider network, which decides whether your doctor is still in it.

Every plan brochure opens with a section listing that year's changes. Reading it takes three minutes and is the single highest-value thing you can do in the window.

When doing nothing costs real money

• Your plan is leaving the programme. Plans withdraw or drop options occasionally. If yours does, inaction is not safe, and OPM's Open Season notice says what happens to affected enrollees. Check it.
• Your household changed. A child turning 26, a divorce, a new baby, a spouse changing jobs. The enrollment type does not adjust itself, so you keep paying for people it no longer covers, or leave someone uncovered.
• Your enrollment type is the expensive one. In some plans Self and Family costs less than Self Plus One for the same two people. Doing nothing keeps you on the wrong side of that. We covered which plans.
• Your prescriptions moved tier. This is the quietest one, and often the most expensive.

The ten-minute minimum

If you genuinely intend to keep your plan, do these four things anyway:

• Read the changes section at the front of your plan's 2027 brochure.
• Check your regular prescriptions against the 2027 formulary.
• Check your doctors are still in network for 2027.
• Re-elect FSAFEDS if you use it.

Common questions