Flexible Spending Account | Time to Save with FSA

It’s that time of year...to save money.  

If you have a Health Care Flexible Spending Account (HCFSA), aka FSA, you can save money by using these funds to reduce your out of pocket costs for qualified FSA medical expenses.  

An FSA is a pre-tax benefit account which may be used to pay for eligible and qualified medical, dental and vision care expenses not covered by your health insurance

Laser vision correction procedures such as LASIK and certain premium intraocular lenses, such as the Symfony IOL, used for cataract surgery are examples of qualified medical expenses.

Your exact savings depends upon your specific income tax rate.  Funds often must be used by the end of the calendar year or may be lost.  Some employers may allow a grace period (extension) and may also allow a “rollover” to the next year.

What is a Flexible Spending Account?

An FSA is a special account set up to pay certain health care expenses.  The money put into this account is not taxed. Employers may make contributions to an FSA, but it is not required.

If your employer has established a health plan, flexible spending accounts can (not always) be established to take advantage of these savings.  Participation in FSAs varies from employer to employer. Check with your company for specific information and benefits.

Saving Through FSA

How much you actually save depends upon how much money you contribute to your account, possible employer contributions and your income tax rate.

This year, flexible spending accounts are limited to $2650/year/employer.  Spouses may contribute another $2650 to a FSA with their employer.

Maximum Savings:  $2650 x (your tax rate) =  Actual Savings

Your actual savings is equal to the taxes you avoid by setting aside the FSA funds.

Funds can be used to pay for qualified medical and dental health care expenses for you, your spouse and dependents.  Funds can be used to pay for deductibles and copays, but can not be used for insurance premiums.

FSA money can also be used for prescriptions and over-the-counter medicines with a doctor’s prescription.

Here is a more complete list of generally permitted medical and dental expenses.

Save on LASIK, Save on Cataract Surgery

Plan now to contribute funds for next year to offset out-of-pocket costs for LASIK or cataract surgery with a premium IOL.

Before committing your funds, make an appointment with us to insure you are a good candidate for laser vision correction or other out-of-pocket costs such as a Symfony premium IOL.

Once confirmed, schedule the procedure with us in accordance to the dates and timing required by your FSA.