Archive: December 14, 2008 - December 20, 2008
Answers to Your Medicare and FEHB Questions
One issue that has generated a good deal of interest among Federal Diary readers lately is the relationship between Medicare and private health insurance plans in the Federal Employee Health Benefit (FEHB). Many people don’t understand how Medicare differs...
By Eric Pianin | December 18, 2008; 10:10 PM ET | Comments (0)
Federal Managers Aren't Happy with Obama's Change Agenda
Politicians love to run on “change,” as Barack Obama did with success. But that doesn’t mean everyone will agree with all of the changes he wants to make. A group of federal managers, for example, doesn’t like one aspect...
By Eric Pianin | December 18, 2008; 3:20 PM ET | Comments (1)
HUD Workers Throws a Pretty "Cool" Holiday Party
If Barack Obama really wants to “make government cool again,” as he said during the campaign, he might want to check out the Department of Housing and Urban Development. About 600 HUD employees had a pretty cool time yesterday...
By Eric Pianin | December 17, 2008; 6:55 PM ET | Comments (8)
Applauding a Health Benefit Change
Senator Benjamin L. Cardin (D-MD) is cheering the decision by the Office of Personnel Management and Blue Cross/Blue Shield to revamp the insurance company’s non-emergency, out-of-network surgical benefit. As today’s Federal Diary reports: In response to outraged workers who have...
By Steven E. Levingston | December 17, 2008; 12:11 PM ET | Comments (0)
Blue Cross/Blue Shield Bows to Pressure on Fees
Protest works. Certainly that’s one message federal employees can take away from the decision yesterday by Blue Cross/Blue Shield to revise its 2009 fee structure for non-emergency surgery by out-of-network doctors. In response to outraged workers who have the...
By Eric Pianin | December 16, 2008; 6:50 PM ET | Comments (1)
Insurer Backs Off Proposed Fee Structure for Federal Workers
In response to some outraged federal employees and members of Congress, health insurance firm Blue Cross/Blue Shield said it has changed its 2009 fee structure for non-emergency surgery by out-of-network doctors. Under a plan announced this afternoon, the Blues standard...
By Eric Pianin | December 16, 2008; 4:44 PM ET | Comments (0)
One Man's Passion to Close Smoking Rooms
David Galosky watched his father die, painfully. It was 22 years ago when emphysema killed Edward S. Galosky. “It is a horrible death,” said David, 56, an electrical engineer for the Federal Communications Commission. “My father screamed in the...
By Eric Pianin | December 15, 2008; 11:00 PM ET | Comments (16)
UPDATED: Bush's Holiday Gift for Workers
President Bush has a holiday gift for federal employees. The government will be closed on Friday, Dec. 26, the day after Christmas, so workers can stay home. UPDATE, 12:20 p.m.: Michael W. Hager, acting director of the Office of Personnel...
By Steven E. Levingston | December 15, 2008; 2:20 PM ET | Comments (0)
