Federal Employees Health Benefits Program Modification of Eligibility to Certain Employees on Temporary Appointments and Certain Employees on Seasonal and Intermittent Schedules, 62325-62329 [2014-24652]

Agencies

• Office of Personnel Management

[Federal Register Volume 79, Number 201 (Friday, October 17, 2014)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Pages 62325-62329]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2014-24652]



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Federal Register / Vol. 79, No. 201 / Friday, October 17, 2014 / 
Rules and Regulations

[[Page 62325]]



OFFICE OF PERSONNEL MANAGEMENT

5 CFR Part 890

RIN 3206-AM86


Federal Employees Health Benefits Program Modification of 
Eligibility to Certain Employees on Temporary Appointments and Certain 
Employees on Seasonal and Intermittent Schedules

AGENCY: Office of Personnel Management.

ACTION: Final rule.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------

SUMMARY: The United States Office of Personnel Management (OPM) is 
issuing a final rule to modify eligibility for enrollment under the 
Federal Employees Health Benefits (FEHB) Program to certain temporary, 
seasonal, and intermittent employees who are identified as full-time 
employees. This final rule follows a notice of proposed rulemaking 
published July 29, 2014. This regulation will allow newly eligible 
Federal employees to enroll no later than January 2015.

DATES: This final rule is effective November 17, 2014.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Marguerite Martel, Senior Policy 
Analyst at (202) 606-0004.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: OPM is modifying eligibility for coverage 
under the Federal Employees Health Benefits (FEHB) Program to certain 
temporary, seasonal, and intermittent Federal employees who are 
expected to work a full-time schedule, which is generally based on the 
definition of full-time employee under section 4980H of the Internal 
Revenue Code (IRC), for at least 90 days.
    Pursuant to 5 U.S.C. 8913(b), OPM has broad authority to prescribe 
the conditions under which employees are eligible to enroll in the FEHB 
program and is empowered to include or exclude employees on the basis 
of the nature and type of their employment or conditions pertaining to 
their appointments, including the duration of the appointment. OPM 
proposed this modification in a notice of proposed rulemaking on July 
29, 2014. The proposed rule had a 30 day comment period during which 
OPM received 100 comments.

Responses to Comments on the Proposed Rule

    OPM received comments from individual members of the public, 
Federal employees, Federal agencies, Federal shared service providers, 
tribal organizations, and public employee unions. The majority of the 
comments were positive. Many members of the public, Federal employees, 
and their families expressed appreciation for the coverage changes. 
This rule would create a more even playing field for similarly situated 
employees.
    Some Federal agencies expressed concern about the effect on the 
budget of this coverage change, stating they may revisit their staffing 
models (such as hiring a different mix of temporary, seasonal, and 
intermittent staff) to accommodate the rule change. OPM recognizes that 
agencies will have to budget for FEHB government contributions for 
those newly eligible employees who elect to participate. OPM also 
recognizes that agencies may reconsider staffing arrangements in light 
of this rule change. OPM continues to believe that this coverage change 
is consistent with the Federal government's role as a model employer.
    One commenter suggested that newly eligible temporary, seasonal, 
and intermittent employees receive a lower government contribution than 
is available to currently eligible employees. OPM understands that such 
a change would lessen the regulation's impact on agency budgets. 
However, OPM's goal is to make affordable health insurance more widely 
available to full-time employees and therefore declines to lower the 
government contribution.
    Several commenters raised concerns that employing agencies may 
limit appointments to fewer than 90 days or limit work hours to fewer 
than 130 hours in a month to avoid providing health insurance to 
temporary, seasonal, and intermittent employees. OPM believes employing 
agencies will use available staffing authorities to meet the needs of 
their workload, rather than changing staffing models in light of this 
rule.
    One commenter was concerned that certain agencies with large 
seasonal workforces will be affected more than others that do not use 
seasonal hiring authorities. OPM recognizes that this is true, but 
continues to believe that this coverage change is consistent with the 
Federal government's role as a model employer.
    One commenter was concerned that the money saved by increasing 
retirement contributions of new permanent staff will be spent on new 
benefits for temporary employees. The changes in retirement benefits is 
independent of this rulemaking, which OPM believes is the best way to 
align access to health benefits across different classes of workers.
    Two commenters raised concerns about whether seasonal Federal 
employees could afford FEHB premiums. It is important to note that 
these newly eligible employees will receive the same government 
contribution as currently eligible Federal employees. OPM believes that 
the government contribution to FEHB is sufficient.
    OPM received numerous questions from Federal entities, including 
agencies and shared service providers, about implementation of the 
proposed rule. These question topics included timing, necessary system 
changes, division of responsibilities between the agency and shared 
service provider, and identification of newly eligible employees. These 
matters are important for implementation, but are outside the scope of 
this regulation and will be handled in forthcoming OPM guidance.
    A commenter asked if those temporary, seasonal, and intermittent 
employees who separate from service would be eligible for the 31-day 
continuation of coverage that is available to other FEHB enrollees when 
eligibility terminates. The answer is yes: the 31-day continuation of 
coverage will be available to the enrollee on the same terms as it is 
for other FEHB enrollees.
    One commenter asked if FEHB coverage under this proposal would 
qualify toward the 5-year continuous coverage requirement prior to 
retirement. FEHB coverage for these newly eligible employees will count

[[Page 62326]]

toward the requirement that Federal retirees maintain FEHB coverage for 
5 years before retirement in order to continue FEHB enrollment into 
retirement. Note that employees carrying FEHB into retirement must also 
be eligible to participate in a qualifying retirement plan. This FEHB 
rule does not change any employee's eligibility to participate in a 
qualifying retirement program.
    Two commenters asked about the IRC section 6056 requirements for 
large employers to report on availability of health insurance to full-
time employees. Those requirements fall outside the scope of this rule. 
OPM plans to issue guidance to Federal agencies and payroll providers 
on IRC section 6056 reporting in a separate communication.
    One commenter asked about whether this modification would apply to 
students and interns working for Federal agencies. Consistent with 
current policy, a paid student or intern who meets the criteria for 
coverage will be eligible to enroll in an FEHB plan. One commenter 
asked about whether Special Assistant United States Attorneys (SAUSAs) 
would be included. To the extent that a SAUSA works in a pay status 
meeting the criteria for coverage, the SAUSA will be eligible to enroll 
in an FEHB plan.

Suggestions To Amend the Proposed Rule

    OPM received nearly identical comments from several tribal 
organizations expressing concern with the proposed language at Sec.  
890.301(k) that would allow certain non-Federal government entities to 
request a waiver from the changes in this rule. The proposed rule 
language stated that such a waiver would be granted at the sole 
discretion of the OPM Director if the non-Federal employer demonstrates 
that the modification would interfere with the employer's self-
governance. These comments requested that waivers should be automatic 
and without pre-conditions for Tribal employers. OPM recognizes that 
Tribal governments are sovereign and that tribes have the best 
understanding of their governmental, employment, and financial needs. 
OPM has taken that into account in this final rule-making with respect 
to the change in coverage and has modified Sec.  890.301(k) regarding 
tribal employers.
    Several tribal organizations also requested that OPM clarify the 
application of the common law employee standard to tribal employers. 
This common law employee standard is used to determine which employees 
of tribal employers may be eligible to enroll in FEHB. The proposed 
rule was limited to a modification of FEHB eligibility for certain 
temporary, seasonal, and intermittent employees and thus this 
clarification is outside the scope of this rule.
    One commenter raised a concern regarding employees who work 15 or 
fewer hours per week because they can receive a full Government 
contribution to FEHB rather than the pro-rated share available to those 
working from 16 to 32 hours per week. This is governed by definitions 
in the Federal Employee's Part-Time Career Employment Act, which is 
outside the scope of this rule.
    Several commenters pointed out that the definition of a full-time 
employee in IRC section 4980H is different from the definition in the 
Federal Employee's Part-Time Career Employment Act of 1978. OPM is 
aware of these differing statutory definitions of part-time and full-
time, but it is outside the scope of this regulation to change these 
definitions.
    Several commenters asked whether FEHB government contributions 
would be pro-rated for these newly eligible employees working between 
16 and 32 hours per week, as they are for permanent employees. The 
Federal Employee's Part-Time Career Employment Act excludes temporary 
and intermittent employees from the definition of ``part-time 
employment.'' As such, agencies are not authorized to pro-rate 
government contributions for newly eligible temporary or intermittent 
employees.
    One commenter suggested that the 130 hour per calendar month full-
time standard be converted to a biweekly pay period standard, since 
many Federal agencies use a bi-weekly pay period rather than a month 
for purposes of pay and timekeeping. OPM assumes that agencies will 
continue to use their current methods of pay period-based timekeeping. 
The 130 hour per month standard in OPM's proposed rule is generally 
consistent with definitions and methodology outlined in IRS rulemaking 
under IRC section 4980H.\1\ Agencies will be responsible for 
implementing this rule as appropriate for their systems and therefore 
OPM believes a regulatory change is not necessary.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \1\ Note that under IRC section 4980H final regulations, a 
different hour of service monthly equivalency will apply for an 
employer using the weekly rule available under the monthly 
measurement method to determine full-time employee status. See 26 
CFR 54.4980H-1(a)(21)(iii) and 54.4980H-3(c)(3).
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    Several commenters suggested that OPM should extend other Federal 
employee health benefits that do not have a government contribution, 
such as dental and vision insurance, long-term care insurance, and 
health care flexible spending accounts to temporary, seasonal, and 
intermittent Federal employees. These suggestions are outside the scope 
of this rule.
    One commenter proposed a different organizational structure for the 
regulations. OPM believes our original construction is satisfactory and 
declines to make the suggested change.
    One commenter suggested that OPM clarify that FEHB coverage will 
begin on the first day of employment for these newly eligible 
employees. For most new employees, coverage is effective on the first 
day of the first pay period after the employee submits enrollment 
paperwork. This will be the same for new employees included in this 
coverage modification. For those who are currently employed as a 
temporary, seasonal, or intermittent employee, this rule becoming 
effective will serve as a qualifying life event (QLE) and coverage will 
become effective according to the existing rules for QLEs.
    Several commenters expressed concern that the projected January 
2015 implementation date does not allow sufficient time for the system 
changes to capture, track, and monitor the data necessary for this 
change. Some suggested a more delayed implementation schedule. OPM 
recognizes the challenges in implementation and is committed to work 
with agencies and payroll providers on implementation challenges. The 
rule is intended to be effective no later than January 2015.

Changes From Proposed Rule

    OPM has made several changes to this final rule. The proposed rule 
used a modified version of the term ``regularly scheduled 
administrative workweek,'' which already has a different meaning in 
other parts of title 5, Code of Federal Regulations. As such, this 
final regulation eliminates that term and instead refers to ``the total 
hours in pay status (including overtime hours) plus qualifying leave 
without pay hours.'' This new language should avoid confusion with 
existing regulatory terms.
    This final rule clarifies in Sec.  890.102(j)(3) that an employee 
enrolled under 890.103(j) will be eligible to remain enrolled in FEHB 
unless the employee exceeds 365 days in nonpay status. This 
clarification aligns enrollment rules for this newly eligible 
population with rules for existing FEHB enrollees.
    One commenter stated that proposed Sec.  890.102(j)(1)(ii) is 
confusing. The proposed provision read ``If the

[[Page 62327]]

employing office expects the employee to work for fewer than 90 days, 
the employee will be eligible to enroll after the completion of a 90 
day waiting period.'' Accordingly, OPM has amended it to state ``If the 
employing office expects the employee to work for fewer than 90 days 
and the employee actually works for fewer than 90 days, the employee 
will generally be ineligible to enroll in FEHB because the employee 
will not be employed at the end of the waiting period applicable to 
these employees. However, if the expectation changes and the employee 
is expected to work for 90 days or more, that individual is eligible to 
enroll upon notification by the employing office, but enrollment 
(including the effective date of coverage) must be no later than the 
end of the waiting period ending on the 91st day after the first day of 
employment.''
    OPM received several comments suggesting changes to how this 
modification would affect non-career United States Postal Service 
(USPS) employees. OPM understands that the USPS currently offers 
affordable employer provided health benefits coverage, separate and 
apart from FEHB for a majority of its full-time non-career employees, 
and is working toward implementing this coverage for the rest of these 
employees. OPM further understands that the category of USPS employees 
referred to as full-time non-career employees generally corresponds to 
the category of employees affected by the modification of FEHB 
eligibility under this final rule. Because the terms and conditions of 
employment for the class of employees that is affected by this rule 
already includes, or is anticipated to soon include, an offer of 
affordable employer provided health benefits coverage, OPM has exempted 
USPS employees from this final rule.
    OPM received a comment that use of the phrase ``employer's need for 
self-governance'' as a justification for waiver of paragraph (j) was 
confusing. OPM has changed this phrase to ``employer's need to manage 
its workforce.''

Provisions of the Final Rule

    This final rule modifies eligibility by authorizing enrollment in a 
FEHB health plan for certain non-Postal Federal employees on temporary 
appointments and certain non-Postal employees working on seasonal and 
intermittent schedules. Currently, most employees on temporary 
appointments become eligible for FEHB coverage after completing 1 year 
of current continuous employment and, once eligible for coverage, do 
not receive an employer contribution to premium. Employees working on 
seasonal schedules for less than 6 months in a year and those working 
intermittent schedules are excluded from eligibility regardless of the 
work hours for which they are expected to be scheduled. Some limited 
exceptions were made to these exclusions for temporary firefighters and 
emergency response workers in 5 CFR 890.102(h) and (i).
    Under this final regulation, non-Postal employees on temporary 
appointments, non-Postal employees on seasonal schedules who will be 
working less than six months per year, and non-Postal employees working 
intermittent schedules will be eligible to enroll in a FEHB health plan 
if the employee is expected to work a full-time schedule of 130 or more 
hours in a calendar month. If the employing office expects the employee 
to work at least 90 days, the employee is eligible to enroll upon 
notification of the employee's eligibility by the employing office. If 
the employing office expects the employee to work fewer than 90 days, 
that individual is considered to be in a 90 day waiting period and is 
generally ineligible to enroll (because the individual will not be 
employed at the end of the waiting period). If the expectation changes 
to at least 90 days, the employee will be eligible to enroll upon 
notification from the employing office, but no later than the 91st day 
of employment. Temporary, seasonal, and intermittent employees who are 
expected to work a schedule of less than 130 hours in a calendar month 
will not be eligible to enroll in a FEHB health plan. Temporary, 
seasonal, and intermittent employees for whom the expectation of hours 
of employment changes from less than 130 hours per calendar month to 
130 hours or more per calendar month would become eligible to enroll in 
an FEHB health plan upon notification from the employing office.
    This final rule allows newly eligible employees (employees on an 
appointment limited to 1 year and employees working on a seasonal or 
intermittent schedule) to initially enroll under the FEHB program with 
a Government contribution to premium if they are expected to be 
employed on a full-time schedule and are expected to work for at least 
90 days. Those expected to work fewer than 90 days will be considered 
in a 90 day waiting period and therefore ineligible to enroll (because 
the individual will not be employed at the end of the waiting period), 
unless that expectation changes during the 90 days.
    Some temporary employees who have completed 1 year of continuous 
employment are already eligible for FEHB coverage but without a 
Government contribution to premium. This final rule allows these 
employees to enroll in a FEHB plan under 5 CFR 890.102(j) (with a 
Government contribution to premium) if the employee is determined by 
his or her employing office to be newly eligible for FEHB coverage 
under this regulation.
    Enrollments for employees newly eligible pursuant to this rule will 
be accepted during a 60-day period after the employing office notifies 
employees of their eligibility to enroll in a FEHB health plan. 
Coverage will become effective as provided for by 5 CFR 890.301. 
Employing offices must promptly determine eligibility of new and 
current employees and upon determining eligibility, promptly offer 
employees an opportunity to enroll in the FEHB Program so that coverage 
becomes effective no later than January 2015.
    While this final regulation modifies FEHB coverage for certain 
categories of Federal employees, there are other employers who are 
entitled to purchase FEHB coverage for their own employees or whose 
employees are otherwise entitled to enroll in FEHB coverage. These 
other employers may have made or are planning to make other 
arrangements to provide health insurance for their temporary, seasonal, 
and intermittent employees. Accordingly, the OPM Director may waive 
application of this final rule when the employer of an individual not 
covered by 5 U.S.C. 8901(1)(A) demonstrates to OPM that this rule's 
requirements would have an adverse impact on the employer's ability to 
effectively manage its workforce. We expect such instances to be rare. 
Tribal employers participating in FEHB may waive application of this 
final rule simply by notifying OPM.

Regulatory Flexibility Act

    I certify that this regulation will not have a significant economic 
impact on a substantial number of small entities because the regulation 
only adds to the list of groups eligible to enroll under the FEHB 
Program.

Executive Orders 13563 and 12866, Regulatory Review

    OPM has examined the impact of this rule as required by Executive 
Order 12866 on Regulatory Planning and Review (September 30, 1993) and 
Executive Order 13563 on Improving Regulation and Regulatory Review 
(January 18, 2011).

[[Page 62328]]

Baseline FEHB Eligibility and Federal Government Employer Shared 
Responsibility

    This final rule would modify eligibility to enroll in a FEHB plan 
to certain temporary, seasonal, and intermittent employees who are 
identified as working full-time. In order to estimate rule-induced 
impacts, it is necessary to assess the number of full-time Federal 
employees who are not currently eligible to participate in the FEHB 
program or are not currently eligible to have the government pay a 
portion of their premium, and thus may be affected by the final rule.
    The following categories of Federal employees are either excluded 
by regulation from participating in the FEHB Program or are not 
currently eligible to have the government pay a portion of their 
premium:
     Temporary employees with less than a year of service. Per 
OPM regulations, most of these individuals are not eligible to enroll 
in FEHB. In 2012 OPM published a regulation extending FEHB eligibility 
to certain temporary firefighters and some personnel performing 
emergency response functions.
     Seasonal employees. Seasonal employees working six months 
or fewer are generally prohibited by regulation from enrolling in FEHB.
     Intermittent employees. Intermittent employees are 
generally prohibited by regulation from enrolling in FEHB. In 2012, 
however, OPM published a regulation extending FEHB eligibility to 
certain intermittent employees engaged in emergency response and 
recovery work.
     Temporary employees with more than a year of service. Per 
statute, these employees can enroll in an FEHB plan if they pay the 
entire premium with no Government contribution.
    OPM has worked with Federal payroll providers to assess how many 
full-time non-Postal Federal employees are without access to FEHB. The 
data show that all responding executive agencies have a small number of 
full-time employees (as defined in Section 4980H of the IRC) without 
access to FEHB. The number without access varies from agency to agency. 
Within agencies, the number varies from month to month. Some large 
departments hire full-time temporary or seasonal employees only for a 
few months of the year.
    The agencies included in our data, in aggregate, offer FEHB to at 
least 95 percent of full-time employees (as defined in IRC section 
4980H) (and their dependents) for all months. Across civilian, non-
Postal, executive agencies and all months of the year, our data 
indicate that there are 300,000 full-time (as defined in IRC section 
4980H) employee-months currently ineligible for FEHB (0.9 to 2 percent 
of the Federal workforce).
    The Federal government and its agencies are subject to employer 
shared responsibility under IRC section 4980H like other applicable 
large employers. The employer shared responsibility payments only apply 
if a full-time employee (generally defined as an employee with 130 
hours of service in a month) receives a premium tax credit in 
connection with the purchase of health insurance through an Exchange. 
We do not know whether the Federal full-time employees not yet eligible 
for FEHB would, in the absence of this rule, be eligible for premium 
tax credits in connection with coverage purchased on an Exchange 
because we lack information on other available sources of health 
coverage or household income. Even in the extremely unlikely case that 
all 300,000 full-time employee-months without FEHB did receive a 
premium tax credit in connection with coverage purchased on an 
Exchange, the total assessable payment incurred by the Federal agencies 
would be well below the threshold, set by Executive Order 12866, for 
economic significance, which is $100 million.\2\
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    \2\ The relevant employer payment would be $250 per month (or 
$3,000 per year), as indexed, only for those full-time employees who 
receive a premium tax credit in connection with coverage purchased 
on an Exchange.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

Impacts of the Final Rule

    Agencies may incur additional FEHB costs; a rough quantification of 
these potential costs appears below.
    We do not know how many individuals without an offer of FEHB, which 
varies widely from month to month, would enroll in FEHB if it were 
available. Our similar recent regulations changing FEHB coverage to 
certain temporary firefighters and disaster recovery workers resulted 
in very limited take-up, ranging from approximately 10 to 20 percent. 
We estimate, using enrollment-weighted averages, that FEHB coverage 
currently costs the government about $700 per full-time worker per 
month for affected agencies.\3\ Given this average cost estimate, if 
those currently without FEHB eligibility become eligible and the 
portion of newly eligible employees who enroll is between 10 and 20 
percent, this modification would generate costs to the Federal 
government of well below the threshold for economic significance, which 
is $100 million.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \3\ This estimate includes FEHB premium payments but not 
administrative costs to employing agencies. We lack data to quantify 
the latter.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    The premium payments newly made by the Federal government are 
appropriately categorized as costs to society if rule-induced increases 
in FEHB enrollment would be associated with providing additional 
medical services to newly-enrolled individuals. To the extent that 
increases in enrollment do not change how society uses its resources, 
then premium payments by the government would instead be transfers 
between members of society. Recipients of these transfers could include 
newly-enrolled individuals, if they would have paid (or paid more) for 
medical services or for health insurance premiums in the absence of the 
rule, or providers and charities, if the effect of the rule is a 
decrease in uncompensated care.
    We lack exact data to quantify rule-induced public health benefits 
or to refine our estimates of costs and transfers.

Federalism

    We have examined this rule in accordance with Executive Order 
13132, Federalism, and have determined that this rule will not have any 
negative impact on the rights, roles and responsibilities of State, 
local, or tribal governments.

List of Subjects in 5 CFR Part 890

    Administrative practice and procedure, Government employees, Health 
facilities, Health insurance, Health professions, Hostages, Iraq, 
Kuwait, Lebanon, Military personnel, Reporting and recordkeeping 
requirements, Retirement.

U.S. Office of Personnel Management.
Katherine Archuleta,
Director.
    For the reasons set forth in the preamble, OPM is amending title 5, 
chapter I, Code of Federal Regulations as follows:

PART 890--FEDERAL EMPLOYEES HEALTH BENEFITS PROGRAM

0
1. The authority citation for Part 890 continues to read as follows:

    Authority: 5 U.S.C. 8913; Sec. 890.301 also issued under sec. 
311 of Pub. L. 111-03, 123 Stat. 64; Sec. 890.111 also issued under 
section 1622(b) of Pub. L. 104-106, 110 Stat. 521; Sec. 890.112 also 
issued under section 1 of Pub. L. 110-279, 122 Stat. 2604; 5 U.S.C. 
8913; Sec. 890.803 also issued under 50 U.S.C. 403p, 22 U.S.C. 4069c 
and 4069c-1; subpart L also issued under sec. 599C of Pub. L. 101-
513, 104 Stat. 2064, as amended; Sec. 890.102 also issued under 
sections 11202(f),

[[Page 62329]]

11232(e), 11246 (b) and (c) of Pub. L. 105-33, 111 Stat. 251; and 
section 721 of Pub. L. 105-261, 112 Stat. 2061.


0
2. Section 890.102 is amended by adding paragraphs (j) and (k) to read 
as follows:


Sec.  890.102  Coverage.

* * * * *
    (j)(1) Notwithstanding paragraphs (c)(1), (2), and (3) of this 
section, a non-Postal employee working on a temporary appointment, a 
non-Postal employee working on a seasonal schedule of less than 6 
months in a year, or a non-Postal employee working on an intermittent 
schedule, for whom the employing office expects the total hours in pay 
status (including overtime hours) plus qualifying leave without pay 
hours to be at least 130 hours per calendar month, is eligible to 
enroll in a health benefits plan under this part as follows:
    (i) If the employing office expects the employee to work at least 
90 days, the employee is eligible to enroll upon notification of the 
employee's eligibility by the employing office, and
    (ii) If the employing office expects the employee to work for fewer 
than 90 days and the employee actually works for fewer than 90 days, 
the employee will generally be ineligible to enroll in FEHB because the 
employee will not be employed at the end of the waiting period 
applicable to these employees. However, if the expectation changes and 
the employee is expected to work for 90 days or more, that individual 
is eligible to enroll upon notification by the employing office, but 
enrollment (including the effective date of coverage) must be no later 
than the end of the waiting period ending the 91st day after the first 
day of employment.
    (2) An employee working on a temporary appointment, an employee 
working on a seasonal schedule of less than 6 months in a year, or an 
employee working on an intermittent schedule for whom the employing 
office expects the total hours in pay status (including overtime hours) 
plus qualifying leave without pay hours to be less than 130 hours per 
calendar month is generally ineligible to enroll in a health benefits 
plan under this part. If the expectation of hours of employment changes 
to 130 hours or more per month for a non-Postal employee, that employee 
is eligible to enroll in a health benefits plan under this part as 
described in paragraph (j)(1)(i) of this section.
    (3) Once an employee is enrolled under this paragraph (j), 
eligibility will not be revoked, regardless of his or her actual work 
schedule or employer expectations in subsequent years, unless the 
employee separates from Federal service, receives a new appointment (in 
which case eligibility will be determined by the rules applicable to 
the new appointment), or exceeds 365 days in nonpay status in 
accordance with Sec.  890.303(e) (subject to extension, if applicable, 
for qualifying leave without pay as defined at paragraph (j)(4) of this 
section).
    (4) For purposes of this paragraph (j), ``qualifying leave without 
pay hours'' means hours of leave without pay for purposes of taking 
leave under the Family and Medical Leave Act, for performance of duty 
in the uniformed services under the Uniformed Services Employment and 
Reemployment Rights Act of 1994, 38 U.S.C. 4301 et seq., for receiving 
medical treatment under Executive Order 5396 (Jul. 7 1930), and for 
periods during which workers compensation is received under the Federal 
Employees Compensation Act, 5 U.S.C. chapter 81.
    (5) Each temporary employee who is initially eligible for FEHB 
coverage on the basis of this paragraph (j) is entitled to enroll in 
accordance with Sec.  890.301(a). A temporary employee who is currently 
eligible under 5 U.S.C. 8906a (with no Government contribution) but who 
is not enrolled on November 17, 2014, and who would also meet 
eligibility requirements on the basis of paragraph (j), is entitled to 
enroll (with a Government contribution) on the basis of paragraph (j) 
in accordance with Sec.  890.301(h)(4)(ii). A temporary employee who is 
enrolled under 5 U.S.C. 8906a (with no Government contribution) on 
November 17, 2014, and who would also meet eligibility requirements on 
the basis of paragraph (j), is entitled to change enrollment (with a 
Government contribution) on the basis of paragraph (j) in accordance 
with Sec.  890.301(h)(4)(ii).
    (k) The Director, upon written request of an employer of employees 
other than those covered by 5 U.S.C. 8901(1)(A), may, in his or her 
sole discretion, waive application of paragraph (j) of this section to 
its employees when the employer demonstrates to the Director that the 
waiver is necessary to avoid an adverse impact on the employer's need 
to manage its workforce. However, a Tribal employer participating under 
25 U.S.C. 1647b may provide a written notification to the Director that 
it has chosen not to apply paragraph (j) of this section for its 
workforce.

0
3. Amend Sec.  890.301 as follows:
0
a. Revise the heading of paragraph (h).b. Redesignate paragraph (h)(4) 
as paragraph (h)(4)(i).
0
c. Add paragraph (h)(4)(ii).
    The revision and addition read as follows:


Sec.  890.301  Opportunities for employees who are not participants in 
premium conversion to enroll or change enrollment; effective dates.

* * * * *
    (h) Change in employment status or entitlement to Government 
contribution. * * *
    (4) * * *
    (ii) A change in entitlement to Government contribution as a result 
of becoming eligible for coverage under Sec.  890.102(j).
* * * * *

[FR Doc. 2014-24652 Filed 10-14-14; 11:15 am]
BILLING CODE 6325-63-P