Your six most important questions about WAEPA, answered.
Insurance can be confusing. Especially in the Federal space, where there is a sea of abbreviations for your benefits packages: TSP, FEHB, FERS, FEGLI, WAEPA, and the list goes on. To help you make sense of your life insurance options, we’ve compiled answers to your top six questions about WAEPA.
What is WAEPA?
Worldwide Assurance for Employees of Public Agencies (WAEPA) is a 501(c)(9) non-profit association formed For Feds, By Feds. WAEPA has offered Group Term Life Insurance* exclusively to Civilian Federal Employees and their families since 1943. Our coverage is underwritten by New York Life Insurance Company.
I’ve never heard of you. What makes you unique?
Beyond offering Group Term Life Insurance, Guaranteed Issue Group Term Life Insurance, and a Chronic Illness Rider to Feds, we also give our members several exclusive benefits not available with FEGLI, including:
Competitive Rates: In 2018, the average member who switched to WAEPA from FEGLI saved $375
Portable Coverage: Keep your policy with you, even if you leave the Federal government or retire
Premium Refunds: We typically refund our members a portion of their premiums every year**
Financial Wellness Planning: WAEPA membership gives you free, unlimited access to a personalized financial wellness service from Ernst & Young (EY)
Scholarships: Since 2007, we’ve awarded over $1.6 million in scholarships to dependents of our insured members
What does your coverage cost?
WAEPA’s premiums cost up to 89% less than your FEGLI coverage. Use our comparison calculator to see a side-by-side comparison.
This sounds too good to be true. Is it?
It’s not too good to be true. We’ve been exclusively serving Feds for more than 75 years. Today, over 46,000 Feds and their families are WAEPA members.
Is this reliable coverage?
Our coverage is underwritten by New York Life Insurance Company, which has been in business for nearly 175 years, and currently insures seven million policyowners. Coverage from WAEPA is so reliable, in fact, that we give our members money back. Although not guaranteed, WAEPA has refunded over $100 million to our members since 1996.
What do I need to apply?
First, you should determine how much coverage you need using our Needs Analysis Calculator. Unlike FEGLI, your coverage with WAEPA is not capped by your salary. You can apply for up to $1.5 million in Group Term Life Insurance coverage, regardless of your salary rate. Next, you’ll apply online. Our application process is simple and takes little time to complete. The application includes various medical underwriting questions. Based on your responses to those questions, you may need to undergo a telephone underwriting process with a representative from New York Life, and submit some additional testing results. Our application allows for you to include payment information for drafting of the initial premium upon approval. Once your policy is issued, you have a free, 30-day look period to determine if our coverage is right for you. WAEPA can serve as an economical supplement or replacement to your FEGLI policy.
For more information on WAEPA Group Term Life Insurance, call our Member Services team at (800) 368-3484 between 8:30am – 6:30pm Monday through Thursday ET, and 8:30 – 5pm Fridays.
*Underwritten by New York Life Insurance Company, 51 Madison Avenue, New York, NY 10010 on Policy Form GMR
**Premium refunds not guaranteed