United States Office of Personnel Management

The Federal Government’s Human Resources Agency

Tribal Benefits Administration Letter

Number: 22-703 Date: October 17,2022 

Subject: 2022 FEHB Open Season for Tribal 

Employees: FEHB Program Significant Plan Changes

This Tribal Benefits Administration Letter (TBAL) is the third and final in our 

series of 2022 Federal Employees Health Benefits (FEHB) Open Season for 

Tribal Employees TBALs. This TBAL provides information on significant plan 

changes for the FEHB Program for 2023. 

This TBAL provides important information on the significant changes 

affecting certain plans in the FEHB Program for the upcoming Open Season.

FEHB Significant Plan Changes

Identifies the plans and their corresponding significant changes. Some of 

these events will require action on the part of tribal employers and tribal 

employees.

Please note that there are plans leaving the FEHB Program at the end of 

2022. Tribal employees in these terminating plans must enroll in a new 

plan during Open Season or their Tribal employer will enroll them in GEHA 

Indemnity Benefit Plan Elevate (the lowest-cost nationwide plan option for 

2023 as determined by OPM). To inform employees of these terminating 

plans, please distribute this list to your employees. It is your responsibility 

to monitor employees who are covered by these terminating plans and 

follow up with those who have not submitted an enrollment change before 

the end of Open Season.

Please distribute the attached list of significant FEHB plan changes to all 

employees so they can check to see if they will be affected by 2023 FEHB 

plan or service area terminations.

Table 1: Plans Leaving the FEHB Program
Tribal Benefits Administration Letter 22-703

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What Must Tribal Employees Do?

• Tribal employees in terminating plans (Table 1) must enroll in a new 

health plan during Open Season. If they do not enroll in a new FEHB 

plan, they will be enrolled in GEHA Indemnity Benefit Plan Elevate (the 

lowest-cost nationwide plan option for 2023 as determined by OPM). 

See Tribal Benefits Administration Letter 16-601 Enrollment Options 

Following the Termination of a Plan or Plan Option for additional 

information on how to automatically enroll individuals who do not 

make an enrollment election during the allotted time period.

• New Coverage: Coverage under an FEHB enrollee’s new health plan 

will be effective beginning January 1, 2023. FEHB enrollees will 

remain covered and receive the 2022 benefits of the old plan until 

coverage under the new plan becomes effective.

What Must You Do?

• You must notify employees enrolled in the plans listed in Table 1 to 

select new plans. Advise your employees if they do not choose new 

FEHB plans, they will be enrolled in GEHA Indemnity Benefit Plan 

Elevate (the lowest-cost nationwide plan option for 2023 as 

determined by OPM).

• Distribute copies of this list to tribal employees with your tribal 

employer’s notice about Open Season along with copies of 

Attachment 2: FastFacts - What to do When Your Health Plan is 

Terminating Coverage in Your Area or Leaving the Federal 

Employees Health Benefits (FEHB) Program.

• Follow up with employees in these plans and remind them to select 

new plans.

• Belated changes: Some tribal employees still might not receive 

instructions to change plans during Open Season. We encourage you 

to accept belated Open Season changes up until the beginning of 2023 

plan year from tribal employees enrolled in terminating plans. After 

the beginning of the plan year, more closely review any requests for 

belated Open Season changes to ensure the circumstances that 

prevented a timely enrollment change were truly beyond the 

employee’s control.

What Will Health Plans Do?

Plan Notification: The plans in Table 1 have been instructed to notify 

FEHB enrollees of the need to select new FEHB plans for 2023; however, 

because some plans’ enrollment and address lists may not be up-to-date, we 

encourage you to accept belated changes.

Table 2: Plans Adding New Options and Enrollment Codes
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Table 3: Service Area Expansions Without New Enrollment Codes

Table 4: Service Area Expansions Adding New Enrollment Codes

Table 5: New Plans Entering the FEHB Program

Table 6: Plans Changing Names 

Table 7: Plans Changing Names of Existing Plan Options

Table 8: Service Area Name Change

Table 9: Enrollment Code Merger With Terminating Enrollment Code

What Must You Do?

You must include the plans with new options, the plans with expanded 

service areas, and the new plans entering the FEHB Program (Tables 2-5) 

when you count the number of eligible tribal employees and place your order 

for brochures. Plan contact information is available on our website.

We encourage you and your tribal employees to visit our website at 

www.opm.gov/tribalprograms for the most up-to-date information. Please 

note that 2023 Plan information will be posted on our website in November.

We look forward to working with you to ensure tribal employees have a 

successful Open Season.

Sincerely,

Laurie Bodenheimer

Associate Director

Healthcare and Insurance

Encl.:

Attachment 1: FEHB Program Significant Plan Changes

Attachment 2: FastFacts: What to do When Your Health Plan is Terminating 

Coverage in Your Area or Leaving the Federal Employees Health Benefits 

(FEHB) Program