Federal employees and retirees will pay an average of 12.3% more toward their health insurance premiums in 2026, marking the second consecutive year of double-digit cost increases.
The government’s share of Federal Employees Health Benefits Program premiums will increase by an average of 9.2%, bringing the overall premium increase to 10.2%.
In 2025, civilian federal workers were estimated to pay an additional 13.5% on their employer-sponsored health insurance, compared to just 7.7% in rate hikes in 2024.
Federal workers enrolled in family coverage pay $38.81 more per paycheck on average next year.
“Federal employees have often chosen the call of public service over the prospect of financial reward offered in the private sector.
In 2026, the average premium for health insurance for federal employees and retirees will increase by 12.3%, the second consecutive year of double-digit cost increases.
The average premium increase for the Federal Employees Health Benefits Program will be 9.2 percent, which will raise the total premium increase to 10.2 percent. An additional 13 percent was projected to be paid by civilian federal employees in 2025 for their employer-sponsored health insurance, compared to only 7 percent in 2024 due to rate increases.
In “self plus one” insurance plans, feds will pay an additional $34.21 per pay period, while those in “self only” plans will pay an additional $15.43 per biweekly paycheck on FEHBP premiums. On average, federal employees who have family coverage pay $38–81 more per paycheck the following year.
Participants in the Postal Service Health Benefits Program, which took the place of the U.S. S. . Premiums for the insurance that the Postal Service offered last fall will rise by an average of 11.3 percent the following year, which is a marginally higher increase than the 11.3 percent rate hike in 2025. The average increase in the government’s portion of PSHB premiums in 2026 will be 8.0 percent.
The average health care premium for postal employees enrolled in “self only” plans is $12.88 more per biweekly pay period, while those in “self plus one” plans pay an additional $29.78. The average salary for postal workers who have family coverage is $32 per month.
According to the Federal Employees Dental and Vision Insurance Program, dental coverage will rise by an average of 3 to 3 percent next year, while vision premiums will rise by an average of 0 to 5 percent.
In a blog post announcing the 2026 premiums, Associate Office of Personnel Management Director for Health Care and Insurance Shane Stevens expressed hope that as President Trump tackles the cost of prescription drugs, premium increases will slow down. Trump made the mathematically impossible claim in August that he would cut drug prices by “1,400 to 1,500 percent” without providing any supporting data.
Stevens wrote, “Drugs account for a significant portion of our overall budget.”. GLP-1s, for instance, have the potential to significantly alter downstream medical costs for many Americans if used and managed appropriately. While much of this is fantastic, they significantly increase our short-term expenses. President Trump is collaborating directly with pharmaceutical companies to help reduce overall costs for all Americans, as you may have noticed. We see a chance to assist in this endeavor and stand to gain from it in order to guarantee that our government plans can also achieve these savings. “”.
Nothing about FEHBP and PSHBP’s annual Open Season, which begins in November, is mentioned in OPM’s materials. from October to December. 8. The removal of the majority of gender-affirming care for federal employees, retirees, and their families by the Trump administration. Similarly, the agency failed to provide further information regarding the understaffing of IT positions in charge of PSHBP maintenance, which Congressmen and the agency’s inspector general have warned could jeopardize the program as a whole.
In conjunction with the ongoing government shutdown, a proposed 1 percent pay increase for non-law enforcement or military personnel, and other efforts by the Trump administration to reduce the size of the federal workforce, the premium increase “erodes the appeal” of public service, according to Bill Shackelford, national president of the National Active and Retired Federal Employees Association.
He said, “With federal employees facing the possibility of missing paychecks because of the government shutdown, a 2026 pay increase that is below market, increased workloads as a result of widespread force reductions, new threats of permanent force reductions in response to the shutdown, and withheld backpay by this administration, news of significant premium hikes further erodes the appeal of federal employment.”. “Federal workers have frequently opted to serve the public interest rather than pursue financial gain in the private sector. Nonetheless, the dedication to service does not negate the necessity of a respectable job that pays enough to support you and your family in light of growing expenses. I am concerned about how the ability to hire and retain the workforce required to meet the needs of the country and serve the public interest will be impacted by the combined effects of growing costs and detrimental workforce policies. “.
