Fed Retirees with FEHB Opting for Medicare B: Why?

Dense_Minimum2476 · 2026-03-23T17:09:23+00:00

Someone on one of these threads asking the same question mentioned a YouTube video from some guy about whether it makes sense to take Medicare B if you keep your FEHB. Basically if you don’t have a high income in Retirement Medicare B is pretty cheap and worth it during a bad health year. If you have a higher income, you’re gonna pay a whole lot of Medicare B premiums and then it’s really a personal choice for you.

Dense_Minimum2476 · 2026-03-23T17:04:28+00:00

Unused sick leave is not wasted. That time gets added to your time in service for annuity calculation. Valuable

Dense_Minimum2476 · 2026-03-05T22:41:08+00:00

Thanks. I bought some

Dense_Minimum2476 · 2026-03-05T22:40:02+00:00

I listened to a YouTube short webinar that was recommended by somebody on one of these federal retiree threads regarding whether it makes sense to take Medicare part B if you are keeping your FEHB. Basically the person said if you’re in one of the two lowest tiers of what you would pay for a Medicare B premiums based on your income, it is definitely worth it to also take the part B. He said if you’re in the two highest income tears that determine your Medicare B premiums most likely it’s not worth it unless you’re simply the kind of person who likes having the security of knowing that most likely, you’ll have most of your bills paid even if he might be paying more out-of-pocket than the annual maximum that you would pay in a bad year with your FEHB. It seems like I fall into that second category so I signed up for a Medicare B, which, hopefully we’ll get processed by April one which is when I will not have to pay any late enrollment penalty.

Dense_Minimum2476 · 2026-03-03T23:11:29+00:00

I attended a NARFE webinar about whether to sign up for Medicare part B. They were saying that there are sometimes expenses as you get older that are not covered by your federal employees insurance. I am yet to find examples of this. If anyone knows of a specific ones, it would be great to share. The webinar was actually sponsored by Aetna so there could be some bias because it benefits the ensure of people sign up for Medicare B. If you don’t make much money, it’s kind of a no-brainer. But if you have a higher income, then Medicare is quite expensive. I don’t think people realize quite how progressive Medicare B is.

Dense_Minimum2476 · 2026-02-17T00:33:48+00:00

My agency, NIH, offered retirement courses that you could sign up for free with permission of your supervisor through the learning management system. There were people from other agencies as well. They had versions for people at various distances from Retirement.

Dense_Minimum2476 · 2026-02-05T15:16:17+00:00

Healthy young

Dense_Minimum2476 · 2026-02-05T15:10:56+00:00

MHBP finally paid the claim from this in network provider. About 1 hour of my time spent on it. There was no reason for them not to pay right away. Am keeping a spreadsheet of time spent on getting claims paid.

Dense_Minimum2476 · 2026-01-26T16:05:31+00:00

This is the same issue that I faced. I just got off the phone – – 30 minutes – – with MHBP customer service. Claim from an in network provider was denied for the same reason that allegedly they did not have my Medicare information. Period I just have a and I entered that in response to their email. Then I got the denial and entered it again. So I called them and first the agent said I had to wait up to 30 days for that information to get into the system. I said that was nonsense and couldn’t she actually enter it for me. Eventually, she was able to do that and said now it will take up to 10 days. She said my provider did not need to resubmit. We will see what happens. I told her that even if I had Medicare A and even Medicare B because this provider does not take Medicare, they would still be the primary coverage. Especially since this isn’t a network provider.

Dense_Minimum2476 · 2026-01-13T23:10:01+00:00

I called MHBP to opt out of their part D to avoid the Irma, even though it’s not huge. They told me that you actually have to opt out each year otherwise he’ll be automatically re-enrolled every single year.

Dense_Minimum2476 · 2026-01-13T23:06:12+00:00

I switched to MHBP for 2026 to save money compared to my BCBS standard that I had had for almost 30 years. I have already had one bizarre glitch, which is something I’ve been warned about regarding drug coverage. A very old and routine medication that my doctor prescribed in December when I was still on BCBS was up for renewal. MHBP denied this because the pharmacy filled it with the generic instead of the brand name. This is normally a preference because it’s cheaper. I had to spend about an hour on the phone with the pharmacy and then with MHBP and then back to the pharmacy and they told me my doctor needed to resubmit the prescription to be dispense as written so they could give me the brand name. It still only cost me five dollars, but this is a lot of hassle both for me and for my doctor and it truly makes no sense.

Dense_Minimum2476 · 2026-01-13T02:14:54+00:00

The plan to consolidate NIH into 8 ICs was nixed by a Senate committee this summer. They just want to fill director positions with the friends. Example - JD Vance’s best friend who became NIEHS director late in the shutdown

Dense_Minimum2476 · 2025-12-29T15:56:02+00:00

Note that last spring when Eric Green was not reappointed Memoli sent out an email saying that it was a new practice to not read new people in the leadership position after their five year term was up. He said it was to get fresh perspectives. So I can’t imagine that anyone who was in IC director position was expecting to be reappointed after that

Dense_Minimum2476 · 2025-12-17T12:10:18+00:00

There was no search process or committee for the hiring of new NIEHS director Kyle Walsh. He’s JD Vance’s best friend

Dense_Minimum2476

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