As open enrollment season approaches for those with workplace health benefits, employees may want to take a fresh look at health care flexible spending accounts, if their employers offer them, because the rules for the accounts have changed.
Flexible spending accounts, or F.S.A.s, can help save money by letting people use pretax dollars to pay for costs a health plan doesn’t cover. That might include dental care, fertility treatments or equipment like blood pressure monitors. About 14 million families participate in health F.S.A.s, the federal government estimates.
While roughly 85 percent of big employers offer health care F.S.A.s, fewer than a quarter of eligible employees use them, according to 2013 data from the benefits consultant Mercer. One deterrent was the “use it or lose it” rule: If you set aside part of your salary in an F.S.A. but didn’t spend it, you would forfeit it at the end of the year. Even though many employers allow a two-and-a-half-month grace period for workers to submit claims, many employees remained cautious.
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Contact Steven G. Cosby, MHSA with questions or to request more information and to schedule a healthcare plan evaluation, savings analysis or group plan solution for your company.