Would you trade one hour of your valuable time to save $1,000, maybe $2,000 next year? And guarantee that if the worst happens - a heart attack, stroke, cancer diagnosis or a major accident - you can concentrate on getting well, not worrying about medical bills.

If so...

Take a little time between now and December 14 to shop around for your 2010 federal health insurance policy. Premiums in one of the most popular options (Blue Cross-Blue Shield standard option) are going up. For nonpostal workers the biweekly premium increase will be $23.02 for self only and $44.38 for family coverage. For postal workers the biweekly increase after Uncle Sam pays the lion's share of the premiums, employees in that plan will pay an additional $11.14 each pay period (or a total of $57.53) every two weeks for self-only coverage. For the family plan they will pay $22.11 more for a total of $132.83 for family coverage.

A couple of plans are going up even more, and a few are actually cutting some of their premiums for 2010.

So what should you do? Whatever you do, don't do what most workers (and the vast majority of retirees) do each year during the open season. Which is: NOTHING!!!

People moan, groan, write their member of Congress or their Senator (who is also covered by the FEHBP) and that's about it. At the end of the open season, year after year, most people stick with their current plan. The one they had last year, and the year before and the year before that.

A handful of people (usually about 6 percent of the total number of policy-holders) do switch plans during an open season. These are often younger, healthier (and by definition smart) folks who shop around for the best deal. And then do something about it.

Shopping for health insurance isn't like getting an MBA. But it does require some work, some thought and an understanding of why you buy insurance (to limit your out of pocket costs in the event of a catastrophic medical event), what you want covered and what you are willing, or can afford, to pay.

Ever thought about an area HMO? Many of them have dropped out of the federal program but there are still plenty of choices in fed-heavy places like DC, Maryland, Virginia, New York, and California. HMOs offer minimum paperwork, low or no co-pays and stress preventive care.

Do you prefer a national fee-for-service plan because you like picking your own doctor? If so, make sure your doctor will be in the plan you pick for NEXT YEAR.

One thing. All of the plans are good. But some may be too costly for what you think you need. Or can afford.

So how do you know (or find out) these things?

A good starting point is available tomorrow at 10 a.m. Listen to our Your Turn with Mike Causey radio show which airs (a little lingo there) every Wednesday at 10 a.m. EST. My guest will be health insurance expert Walton Francis. He's author (for the past 30 plus years) of Checkbook's Guide to Federal Health Plans. The 2010 edition (available to many feds over their office computers) lists a variety of "best buys" for young federal workers, postal employees, retirees with and without Medicare, single federal workers, married couples with and without kids or married feds who, maybe, each want a different health plan.

So listen if you can (if you can't, the show will be archived on our website) and call in at 1-877-936-9333 if you like. You can also e-mail questions to me, and I'll lay them on Walt Francis. Send them to me at: mcausey@federalnewsradio.com

Meantime, eat an apple every day.

An article in UniverseToday answers the musical question: Why did HAL sing 'Daisy'? It turns out that as Arthur C. Clarke was putting the finishing touches on the screenplay for "2001: A Space Odyssey", he visited Bell Labs. There he was "treated to a performance of the song 'Daisy Bell' (or, 'A Bicycle Built for Two') by the IBM 704 computer."

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