SEC. 2. ENHANCED DENTAL BENEFITS FOR FEDERAL EM-
PLOYEES. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—Subpart G of part III of title 5, 
United States Code, is amended by inserting after chapter 
89 the following: 
‘‘CHAPTER 89A—ENHANCED DENTAL 
BENEFITS 
‘‘Sec. 
‘‘8951. Definitions. 
‘‘8952. Availability of dental benefits. 
‘‘8953. Contracting authority. 
‘‘8954. Benefits. 
‘‘8955. Information to individuals eligible to enroll. 
‘‘8956. Election of coverage. 
‘‘8957. Coverage of restored survivor or disability annuitants. 
‘‘8958. Premiums. 
‘‘8959. Preemption. 
‘‘8960. Studies, reports, and audits. 
‘‘8961. Jurisdiction of courts. 
‘‘8962. Administrative functions. 
‘‘§ 8951. Definitions 
‘‘In this chapter: 
‘‘(1) The term ‘employee’ means an employee 
defined under section 8901(1). 
‘‘(2) The terms ‘annuitant’, ‘member of family’, 
and ‘dependent’ have the meanings as such terms 
are defined under paragraphs (3), (5), and (9), re-
spectively, of section 8901. 
‘‘(3) The term ‘eligible individual’ refers to an 
individual described in paragraph (1) or (2), without 
regard to whether the individual is enrolled in a 
health benefits plan under chapter 89.
‘‘(4) The term ‘Office’ means the Office of Per-
sonnel Management. 
‘‘(5) The term ‘qualified company’ means a 
company (or consortium of companies) that offers 
indemnity, preferred provider organization, health 
maintenance organization, or discount dental pro-
grams and if required is licensed to issue applicable 
coverage in any number of States, taking any sub-
sidiaries of such a company into account (and, in the 
case of a consortium, considering the member com-
panies and any subsidiaries thereof, collectively). 
‘‘(6) The term ‘employee organization’ means 
an association or other organization of employees 
which is national in scope, or in which membership 
is open to all employees of a Government agency 
who are eligible to enroll in a health benefits plan 
under chapter 89. 
‘‘(7) The term ‘State’ includes the District of 
Columbia. 
‘‘§ 8952. Availability of dental benefits 
‘‘(a) The Office shall establish and administer a pro-
gram through which an eligible individual may obtain den-
tal coverage to supplement coverage available through 
chapter 89.
‘‘(b) The Office shall determine, in the exercise of its 
reasonable discretion, the financial requirements for quali-
fied companies to participate in the program. 
‘‘(c) Nothing in this chapter shall be construed to 
prohibit the availability of dental benefits provided by 
health benefits plans under chapter 89. 
‘‘§ 8953. Contracting authority 
‘‘(a)(1) The Office shall contract with a reasonable 
number of qualified companies for a policy or policies of 
benefits described under section 8954 without regard to 
section 5 of title 41 or any other statute requiring com-
petitive bidding. An employee organization may contract 
with a qualified company for the purpose of participating 
with that qualified company in any contract between the 
Office and that qualified company. 
‘‘(2) The Office shall ensure that each resulting con-
tract is awarded on the basis of contractor qualifications, 
price, and reasonable competition. 
‘‘(b) Each contract under this section shall contain— 
‘‘(1) the requirements under section 8902 (d), 
(f), and (i) made applicable to contracts under this 
section by regulations prescribed by the Office; 
‘‘(2) the terms of the enrollment period; and 
‘‘(3) such other terms and conditions as may be 
mutually agreed to by the Office and the qualified
company involved, consistent with the requirements 
of this chapter and regulations prescribed by the Of-
fice. 
‘‘(c) Nothing in this chapter shall, in the case of an 
individual electing dental supplemental benefit coverage 
under this chapter after the expiration of such individual’s 
first opportunity to enroll, preclude the application of 
waiting periods more stringent than those that would have 
applied if that opportunity had not yet expired. 
‘‘(d)(1) Each contract under this chapter shall re-
quire the qualified company to agree— 
‘‘(A) to provide payments or benefits to an eli-
gible individual if such individual is entitled thereto 
under the terms of the contract; and 
‘‘(B) with respect to disputes regarding claims 
for payments or benefits under the terms of the con-
tract— 
‘‘(i) to establish internal procedures de-
signed to expeditiously resolve such disputes; 
and 
‘‘(ii) to establish, for disputes not resolved 
through procedures under clause (i), procedures 
for 1 or more alternative means of dispute reso-
lution involving independent third-party review 
under appropriate circumstances by entities
mutually acceptable to the Office and the quali-
fied company. 
‘‘(2) A determination by a qualified company as to 
whether or not a particular individual is eligible to obtain 
coverage under this chapter shall be subject to review only 
to the extent and in the manner provided in the applicable 
contract. 
‘‘(3) For purposes of applying the Contract Disputes 
Act of 1978 to disputes arising under this chapter between 
a qualified company and the Office— 
‘‘(A) the agency board having jurisdiction to de-
cide an appeal relative to such a dispute shall be 
such board of contract appeals as the Director of the 
Office of Personnel Management shall specify in 
writing (after appropriate arrangements, as de-
scribed in section 8(c) of such Act); and 
‘‘(B) the district courts of the United States 
shall have original jurisdiction, concurrent with the 
United States Court of Federal Claims, of any ac-
tion described in section 10(a)(1) of such Act rel-
ative to such a dispute. 
‘‘(e) Nothing in this section shall be considered to 
grant authority for the Office or third-party reviewer to 
change the terms of any contract under this chapter.