Dental Up 1%, Vision 1.6% for 2027

Premiums for insurance under the Federal Employees Dental and Vision Insurance Program are going up in 2027.

Military retirees may buy vision and dental coverage through FEDVIP; and active-duty families, and beneficiaries enrolled in Tricare Reserve Select, may buy vision coverage.

Enrollment in FEDVIP takes place during the Federal Benefits Open Season, which is Nov. 9-Dec. 14, 2026, for coverage that takes effect Jan. 1, 2027.

What Premiums Will Do

Dental premiums will go up an average of 1.0% overall in 2027, and vision premiums will rise an average of 1.6%. Those are averages across carriers, according to the federal Office of Personnel Management’s “highlights” document for the 2027 plan year. The office has separately posted plan-level figures.

The direction flipped from a year ago. OPM’s highlights for plan year 2026 listed a 3.35% average dental increase, up from 2.97% in 2025, and a 0.47% average vision increase, down from 0.87%. Dental increases are slowing for 2027, while vision increases have more than tripled.

Averages can hide wide swings. In a 2026 breakdown of self-plus-one premiums published by the Military Officers Association of America (MOAA), increases to dental premiums ranged from 0.6% to 11% depending on carrier, plan level and rating area, and three vision carriers held premiums flat while one carrier’s standard plan rose 10%.

Related: Want Extra Vision Insurance? Get It Through FEDVIP

Carriers and Plans

OPM says FEDVIP will have 11 dental carriers offering 21 plan options and five vision carriers offering 10 plan options for 2027, for 31 plan options in all. Those carrier counts match 2026, when HealthPartners Dental left the program.

What Gets Better

OPM says several dental carriers chose to enhance their benefit options, covering additional procedures. The highlights document lists additional preventive, restorative and anesthesia procedures. One vision carrier increased its standard and high option maximums for contact lenses.

OPM also lists a Compare Dental Service Costs Tool that lets users compare estimated out-of-pocket costs for 75 common dental services across all 11 dental carriers. Using it requires a FEDVIP account through BENEFEDS.gov.

Related: Open Enrollment: How to Choose a FEDVIP Dental Plan

What Happens if You Do Nothing

OPM says FEDVIP enrollment carries over from year to year unless a participant makes a change during Open Season. MOAA notes that enrollees who take no action are rolled into the same plan at the new price.

Outside the window, changes require a FEDVIP qualifying life event.

Related: What is a FEDVIP Qualifying Life Event?

What to Check Before Dec. 14

MOAA’s guidance on the 2026 plans noted that dental premiums vary by ZIP code, that standard plans cost about half as much as high plans but carry higher copayments, and that the most important factor is whether a family’s dentist or optometrist accepts the plan. Vision plans differ mainly in their yearly frame and lens allowances, MOAA reported.

Stay on Top of Your Military Benefits

Military benefits are always changing. Keep up with everything from pay to health care by subscribing to Military.com, and get access to up-to-date pay charts and more with all the latest benefits delivered straight to your inbox.