The Office of Personnel Management (OPM) has officially finalized a rule aimed at protecting career civil servants from the potential reemergence of the Schedule F policy, an initiative from the previous administration that sought to convert most federal employees to at-will workers. Published in the Federal Register on April 4, 2024, this regulation solidifies protections for 2.2 million federal employees, making it challenging for any future administration to reintroduce Schedule F-like policies. 

The FEHB Protection Act, H.R. 7868, was marked up by the House Committee on Oversight and Accountability on April 10, and then subsequently passed the same day. The bill, and its counterpart in the Senate, S.4035, is aimed at combating fraud in the largest employer- sponsored health insurance program in the United States, the Federal Employees Health Benefits Program (FEHBP). The bill would require federal agencies to verify that an employee is eligible to add a family member to their FEHB health coverage plan.

Q. My service computation date (SCD) says I have 30 years of service. Why is my HR office telling me I am not eligible to retire? I am 58 years old. How can this be?