Employees of the State of Florida have until 6:00 p.m. Eastern Time this Friday to complete their enrollment in the State Group Insurance Program and to select or modify their health, dental, vision, and other benefits for the year 2027.
The open enrollment period began on October 12 at 8:00 a.m. and closes this afternoon with no extensions.
Both Florida State University (FSU) and the University of Central Florida (UCF) issued final reminders to their employees urging them to take action before the closing.
"This is your annual opportunity to change your Florida State insurance (health, dental, vision, etc.)," noted the FSU announcement approved by Renisha Gibbs, Associate Vice President of Human Resources.
Any choice or change made during this window will take effect on January 1, 2027.
To manage benefits, employees must access the People First portal at peoplefirst.myflorida.com. Those who have not logged in within the last 90 days will need to update their password before entering, as the system may experience high demand during the last hours.
Among the most relevant changes for the 2027 plan, as reported by UCF on its open enrollment page, the high-deductible plans (HDHP, both HMO and PPO) will see an increase in their annual deductibles: the individual deductible will rise by $50, reaching $1,750, and the family deductible will increase by $100, reaching $3,500.
The contribution limits for Health Savings Accounts (HSAs) are also increasing: $4,500 for individual coverage and $9,000 for family coverage, including employer contributions.
In dental matters, the plans from Ameritas (Preventive and Standard) and MetLife (Preventive, Standard, and Indemnity) are experiencing increases in their monthly premiums. For reference, the monthly premium for the Ameritas Preventive plan for an individual employee rises to $23.84, while family coverage reaches $70.60.
Once registration is closed, employees will only be able to modify their benefits if they experience a qualifying change in status (QSC), such as marriage, divorce, the birth of a child, or loss of other coverage. In that case, they have 60 days from the event to notify People First.
Employees in personal services (OPS) who averaged 30 hours or more per week between October 3, 2025, and October 2, 2026, are eligible to participate.
Those who do not reach that threshold and already have active coverage will lose it on December 31, 2026, with the option to continue through COBRA starting January 1, 2027.
It’s important to clarify that this program is different from Medicaid, Medicare, and the individual market of the Affordable Care Act (ACA), which have their own enrollment periods and rules.
For inquiries, the People First Service Center can be reached at (866) 663-4735 Monday through Friday, from 8:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. Eastern Time.
After this afternoon's closure, the next opportunity to review and adjust coverages without a qualifying event will not come until fall 2027.
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