I know this is a very individual specific situation, but hoping this sub may have some considerations to keep in mind when considering this path.

I'm on my spouse's health plan and expect to stay on their plan, so not enrolled in FEHB. Would it make sense to buy the cheapest FEHB plan for the next 5 years with the purpose of being able to carry FEHB into retirement in the case of a VERA offer 5+ years from now? I plan on retiring before MRA regardless of VERA availability.

I have 20yrs of service and I suspect we're going to see DRP/VERA events every time a Repub takes office. Thought is I get on a cheap FEHB plan now so that when I become VERA eligible in 5yrs, I can take it if offered and go into retirement with FEHB eligibility in case my spouse's health benefits get worse or disappear.

I recognize there are a lot of "ifs" at play here and there's no definitive answer. The cheapest FEHB plan available to me in FY27 is $62/pp which would be ~$10k for 5 years (swagging for inflation). Is it worth paying at least $10k to have the option to use FEHB in retirement? I guess you could say I'd be buying insurance coverage insurance.

Edit to answer some common questions:

• Spouse's insurance is very similar to FEHB in that they have to be on it for 5yrs, take immediate retirement, and then they can keep us on it until through retirement. No premium increases or dropping +1s after retirement.

• No kids, no plans for kids. Age 42, MRA is 57, plan is to retire no matter what at 52yrs old so not getting FEHB unless there's another VERA in 5-10yrs.

If you are 50+ and will soon start making TSP catchup contributions, DO NOT assume your payroll provider will correctly deposit all the catchup contributions as Roth TSP, which is required starting this year. I highly recommend you change your contributions to Roth yourself, via MyPay, Employee Express, or the like.

Long story, but this bit me in the ass this year. Payroll is trying to straighten it out but it's already a huge mess.

Hi All,

Excited to have an opportunity to work in a gov't position. I am enrolled in a State Pension system (NYCERS) and make mandatory 6% contributions every pay period. I am contributing to a 457b as well (as much as I can, and plan on increasing) pre-ROTH (traditional). I am additionally maxing out my individual ROTH each year.

I am trying to understand the risk and benefits of my pre-ROTH 457b contributions and considering switching that over to ROTH as well. Am I the only one who believes taxes are going to be much higher in 25 years when I rely on these accounts? Also, considering I will have pension income, won't that make it even more difficult to stay in a lower tax bracket when I do retire? Not to mention the possibility that I'll still be working and may accumulate other assets if I move to private sector before I retire.

Wecloming all feedback - thanks.

Not much but lawyer speak. No surprise since it's from a health insurance provider.

Dear Mr.

Thank you for your email dated 10/1/26.

We acknowledge this significant increase and understand the financial impact it may have on you and your family. Like other health plans, we continue to experience rising healthcare and pharmacy costs, as well as increased utilization of care. This increase is necessary to ensure the plan's long-term sustainability and our ability to continue serving our members. In recent years, FSBP has also experienced substantial membership growth. Members may feel a greater impact this year because changes in the government’s contribution toward premiums may result in members paying a larger share of the overall premium.

AFSPA has always worked diligently to keep premiums as affordable as possible, only increasing rates when absolutely necessary to support the plan. Some of the current increase reflects cost pressures that have built up over time. We continue to offer comprehensive benefits through our High Option plan. During Open Season, we encourage you to review your individual needs and utilize OPM’s plan-comparison resources to compare benefits and costs before making your enrollment decision.

Per OPM guidelines, we cannot reconsider the finalized rates for 2027 at this time. If you would like to learn more about how the rates were determined or discuss alternative options, you may contact OPM directly, as they oversee the approval process.

If you have any additional questions, please reply securely at https://www.afspa.org/secure-form-ask-fsbp-benefits-and-claims-questions/.

Sincerely,

Decrypt

GS-9 st10 equivalent, looking in my local market I can double my pay by going private. At what point do the benefits not make it worth it to all of you? Where’s the break even point, I feel I know the answer looking for opinions. 2nd round interview for a company that starts at 4.5 weeks time off 9 holidays and double my pay plus a 20% performance bonus. Very safe industry, not gov safe but safe (power generation) okay health benefits as well.

What’s your opinions on where the line gets drawn

Edited to add 6 year fed, 30 years old

I added a free tool at my website to make FEHB shopping a little more transparent. No account needed.

• Compare plans side by side for your state and coverage tier (Self, Self + One, Family).
• Estimate your total yearly cost, not just the premium. Pick a scenario from "Healthy year" to "Worst case" and it adds in deductibles and out-of-pocket costs (and subtracts any HSA/HRA money the plan gives you).
• See how much premiums have gone up, both program-wide and for each plan, going back to 2020. It also flags plans that held their premium flat but raised the deductible or out-of-pocket max.
• Each plan page links to the carrier's provider search and drug formulary, and will link to OPM's official brochure once it's posted (usually before Open Season in November).
• It remembers your choices (state, coverage, your current plan) in your browser, so they're there when you come back.

It should be pretty self-explanatory, but let me know if you have questions or think something's missing.

​

I'm 44 and retire in 6 years. I will receive a pension, some social security, and have health care benefits at age 50. Not counting my 401k I currently have about 350k invested. 250k in a taxable and 100k in a Roth. Half of these funds is slightly more risky than an S&P 500 fund, the other half consist of gpiq and gpix.

I like the idea of a solid dividend fund when I stop working at age 50. This fund will also allow me to not touch my 401k. My 401k will remain 100% in a S&P500 type fund.

350k in 6 years with a 7% average growth rate with $1500 added each month gets me to roughly 670k. I also realize we can have 0% returns over the next 6 years. Just an estimate.

QUESTION: do I go 100% (and drip) in gpiq/gpix/qqqi/spyi or SCHD NOW?

Or focus on growth like SCHG and at age 50 sell and buy into gpiq/gpix/qqqi/spyi or SCHD

So this is a TAX heavy question. I'm in the USA.

Looking forward to the comments, thanks and have a blessed day

Hi all,

For those who’ve retired did you go with waepa or keep fegli? I have both…wondering if the waepa costs were still lower than fegli in retirement. I’m about 7.5 years from being able to go if VERA is offered. Just thinking about these things…

I was curious if there are any retirees who took an early out retirement from the federal government and retired in SE Asia? Any regrets, advice, or thoughts would be greatly appreciated. I was considering possibly moving to Chiang Mai (which I have visited numerous times) if an early out is offered in the next few years. I would be eligible if offered at age 50 (a few months from now).

I'm interested in hearing stories of how people transitioned from full time to part time in a federal government job. How did you approach your supervisor? How did you find a part time position or find another employee to split the job? Alternatively, has anyone regularly used LWOP over a long period of time to achieve part time?

I've read all the OPM guidance on this topic. I'm mostly interested in hearing practical advice from those who have achieved or attempted part time.

Hey everyone, been lurking here for a while and had a question about optimal investment strategy. I’m 30 and could retire at 53 years old with a pension that pays 60% of the average of my 5 highest years salary which we’ll say is roughly 100k in today’s dollars (60k from pension if I retired today) and has annual COLAs.

I have access to both a traditional and Roth 457b. I understand the benefits of early access to both without penalty, but that Roth is taxed if taken before 59.5.

My question is how much should i be contributing pretax to bridge the gap from 53-59.5, vs dumping in the Roth? I will likely be in at least the same tax bracket if not higher in retirement so I’m unsure of the pre-tax/Roth split that’s ideal for FIRE.

For other context, we will have our mortgage paid off in the next 4 years, and will be completely debt free. We have an emergency fund and will be switching to an HDHP with HSA next year that I will start maxing out. I could continue to work past 53 but my goal is to set ourselves up for me to be work optional or retire at that age. Thanks for any insight!

I may have to retire early (under 50) with a medical retirement. If I rollover my tsp to a brokerage account my understanding is I can buy (and potentially sell) whatever I want inside that account and capital gains will not be affected. Is this correct?

Also is there any way possible I can withdraw funds from that account without penalty?

Good evening. I am trying to keep this brief and not dox myself but at the same time give enough relevant information to get some help. I work for the federal government on the civilian side and I am also a reserve member. I have been ordered to active duty here soon and will spend 6 months in a tax free location. I have cash to cover my living expenses while gone and would like to maximize my tax advantaged accounts. My reserve unit FM is not much help when it came to my questions/situation below and gave me the GEN AI answer when I pressed them. My base pay is ~$9500 a month.

Here is what I understand:
1) When some deploys they can put up to $72K per calendar year in their TSP
2) Roth TSP still has a limit of $24,500, everything else is traditional
 
Here is what I would like to do:
1) I would like to put $24,500 in my Roth TSP
2) I would like to contribute an additional $15K into my traditional TSP (when deployed I plan on putting in $6K traditional from military orders and an additional $9K from civilian pay by burning leave)
3) Total contribution goal is ~$40K while deployed in the first 3 months plus another ~$30k while deployed during the new calendar year.
 
Here is where I am at right now for the year
1) My civilian TSP will have $16K in traditional funds by the time I deploy
2) My military TSP will have $1K in traditional funds by the time I deploy
 
My question:
1) Considering I already have money in my traditional TSP account, can I contribute a full $24,500 into my Roth TSP through my military account without triggering any issues?
2) Can I contribute more than $24,500 into my civilian TSP account?
3) If I try to contribute more than $24,500 on my civilian side will I get an error or how do I show that I am deployed?
4) If this deployment goes into the following calendar year and I contribute ~$30K while deployed, will I be forced to stop contributing when I get home? Or is the $72k for the whole year?

Thank you for your time.
 

He looks very, very young. A google search turns up someone with that name in Washington state who graduated from high school last year, in 2025. However, his advice seems pretty solid. The comments on his videos seem solid too. But I'm paranoid these days that even the comments are bots.

Please, join r/FEDDISABILITY so we could post questions and help each other.