health plan, and I know that I need to elect a survivor benefit to protect his health insurance. I would like to elect a small benefit for him. How does this work?
A
You have a wide range of choices for a survivor benefit because you are under the CSRS. Of course, you do have to get your spouse’s consent if you elect less than a full survivor benefit. You may elect as little as $1 a month to protect this benefit for him, or 55 percent of your full annuity for the highest amount allowable by law. You probably will want to look at the cost before you make up your mind. You will pay 2-½ percent for the first $3,600 of your basic annuity and 10 percent for the remainder. For example, if you elect $3,600 as your base, this will cost you $90 a year. Divide by 12 to determine your monthly deduction. You may want to leave a benefit that would pay for part of his health insurance.
Retirement checklist
Q
I am thinking of retiring in the next several months after 27 years of federal employment. I am in the Federal Employees Retirement System (FERS). I have gone through my service benefits office and received an estimate of my benefits package upon retirement. Is there a checklist with time frames, etc., of what I should be doing during these final months of employment in preparation for retirement?
A
If you still have your copy of the April 2013 issue of narfe magazine, please see p. 27, where we carried checklists for FERS and Civil Service Retirement System (CSRS) employees, provided to us by the Office of Personnel Management (OPM). The checklists are designed to help federal employees ensure that their retirement paperwork is complete and ready for processing. The checklists also are available on the NARFE website, www. narfe.org. Log in as a member, click on Departments at the top of the Member Home Page and select “Federal Benefits” from the drop-down menu, then click on “OPM Retirement Guide and Checklists.”
retirees Seeking Annuity Adjustment
Q
My monthly annuity with survivor benefits should be $1,000 more than what I am getting. I have sent the Office of Personnel Management (OPM) documentation to this effect but still have not had the annuity adjusted. What do I need to do to get this corrected?
A
With OPM under pressure to reduce its inventory of new retirement cases, its available staff is being used primarily to adjudicate the incoming cases of new retirees. Meanwhile, other work has gotten a lower
priority. Though it is unlikely that OPM can expedite the review of your case before others, we can assure you that if OPM agrees there was an error in the computation of your annuity, it will make the necessary adjustment and pay you the difference back to your annuity commencement date.
Insurance for spouse without annuity
Q
I retired under the Civil Service Retirement System (CSRS) in November 1989 with 28 years and two months to my credit. My retirement fell under an abolishment process that allowed me to collect my portion of retirement contributions. This reduced my annuity in perpetuity. I also waived survivor benefits for my wife. She has never been a federal employee. She is, however, currently covered under our Kaiser Health Insurance family plan in the Federal Employees Health Benefits Program (FEHBP). I recognize that my spouse will no longer be entitled to my pension should I predecease her. Will she, though, be able to continue her coverage under our current Kaiser Health Insurance family plan under the FEHBP should she survive me? If not, what are my options?
A
Without a monthly survivor benefit, your wife’s coverage under your FEHBP health plan terminates, subject to a 31-day extension, at midnight on the day you die. w w w. n a r f e . o r g
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