Benefits Newsletter: December, 2022

Time is running out!  The Benefits Open Season runs through December 12, 2022. Don’t miss this opportunity.  If you plan to make an Open Season election, now is the time to do it.  Unless you experience a Qualifying Life Event during the year, the Open Season is your only opportunity to enroll, cancel your enrollment, or make a change to your enrollment for the participating programs. 

Fall Open Enrollment for the NIH Leave Bank will run November 14 – December 12, 2022. The membership period will begin on January 1, 2023.  Enrollment in the Leave Bank is open to all NIH Federal employees.

The Leave Bank is a pooled bank of donated leave available to eligible members. It acts like insurance for your paycheck and amounts to paid leave for members who have exhausted all of their own sick and annual leave and are affected by a personal or family medical emergency.

Last year, NIH employees lost an estimated $9.7 million in annual leave. Don’t let your leave disappear!  Please donate your unused “Use-or-Donate” annual leave to the NIH Leave Bank by December 31, 2022!

The IRS has increased the Flexible Spending Account (FSA) contribution limits for the Health Care Flexible Spending Account (HCFSA) and the Limited Expense Health Care FSA (LEX HCFSA).  For 2023, participants may contribute up to an annual maximum of $3,050 for a HCFSA or LEX HCFSA.

The Dependent Care FSA (DCFSA) maximum annual contribution limit did not change for 2023.  It remains at $5,000 per household or $2,500 if married, filing separately.

The Thrift Savings Plan (TSP) contribution limits have been announced for 2023.  The 2023 IRS annual limit for regular TSP contributions is $22,500, and the TSP Catch-up annual contributions limit is $7,500.  The Catch-up contributions may be made in addition to regular TSP contributions, if you are age 50 or older (or will be turning age 50 in 2023). 

A Flexible Spending Account (FSA) is an employee benefit that allows you to set aside money, on a pre-tax basis, for certain health care and dependent care expenses. There are three types of FSA accounts:  1) Health Care FSA (HCFSA); 2) Limited Expense Health Care FSA (LEX HCFSA); and 3) Dependent Care FSA (DCFSA).

The Office of Personnel Management (OPM) is suspending new applications for coverage in the Federal Long Term Care Insurance Program (FLTCIP) to allow OPM and the FLTCIP administrator time to thoroughly assess the benefit offerings and establish sustainable premium rates that reasonably and equitably reflect the cost of the benefits provided.  The suspension period begins December 19, 2022, and will remain in effect for 24 months, unless OPM decides to end or extend the suspension period.

The Thrift Savings Plan (TSP) is a retirement savings and investment plan for Federal employees and members of the uniformed services.  If you are covered under the Federal Employees Retirement System (FERS, FERS-RAE, and FERS-FRAE), contributing to the TSP is extremely important, as the TSP will be a very large part of your retirement income.  To learn about the importance of contributing to the TSP, take a few minutes to view the following short, informative videos: