Does Congress Have Special Health Insurance? 
In 1959 , Congress passed the Federal Employees Health Benefits Act -LRB- FEHBA -RRB- . Its primary purpose was to attract & retain talented personnel to compete with the private sector . It is made available to both active & retired workers . Congress participates in the FEBHA . Currently , the FEBHA offers about 300 different plans with a `` defined contribution '' approach ; wherethe better the benefits the more the cost to the employee . The plans are definitely better than private sector insurance and where the private sector has virtually eliminated retiree benefits , the FEBHA has not . So , member of congress that serves just one term would be eligible for the benefits for remainder of his/her life . It is not necessarily special to them , but it is different and probably a much better plan than the average American would have access to plus it can be carried throughout the retirement years . 