Healthcare FSA
You may use a healthcare flexible spending account (FSA) (also referred to as a medical FSA) to pay for eligible medical, dental, and vision expenses that are not reimbursed by any healthcare plan.
Eligible expenses
Eligible expenses include deductibles, coinsurance, copay amounts for doctor's office visits and prescription drugs, and others such as over-the counter drugs and medicines, feminine hygiene products, glasses, contact lens solution, and laser vision surgery. Refer to the HealthEquity/Board of Pensions Education Center for additional information, including a list of FSA qualified medical expenses
Whose expenses are eligible
You may use your healthcare FSA to pay for eligible expenses incurred by:
- you
- your spouse
- dependents you claim on your federal tax return
- your children who are age 26 or younger at the end of the tax year
You don’t need to enroll your spouse and/or children in your medical coverage to pay their expenses from your healthcare FSA.
How it works
- You estimate eligible healthcare expenses for the upcoming year.
- Next, you decide the annual amount to defer from your salary — how much to have set aside from each paycheck — to go into the FSA to pay for eligible expenses for the coming year (this amount is called the election; IRS limits apply). Your employer will give you an enrollment form to make your annual election and return for processing.
- Your employer will deduct the amount you elect for the FSA from your pay on a pretax basis. This amount will be credited to your FSA over the course of the year.
- When you have an eligible expense, you can either pay with a healthcare Visa debit card (issued by HealthEquity after enrollment) or submit the expense through the HealthEquity member portal for reimbursement from your FSA. You should save all receipts for reimbursements and to validate expenses.
- The full amount you elect to contribute for the year is available on the first day of the plan year (or the date your participation begins, if later). You do not have to wait for payroll contributions to accumulate in your account before paying expenses with your healthcare FSA.
Important: The IRS has a
use or lose rule for FSAs. This means that, at year-end, you risk losing unused FSA funds. Because of the use or lose rule, it is important to estimate expenses carefully each year you enroll in an FSA.
Note: If your employer offers a healthcare FSA, it may include a rollover feature that lessens the risk of losing unused FSA funds by letting you carry forward to the next year the amount left in your account at year-end (up to the IRS limit). Check with your employer to find out if the FSA available to you has this feature.
Using your healthcare FSA
If you're enrolled in an FSA, you can manage your account through the HealthEquity member portal. HealthEquity will send you login credentials to access your account.
Once registered, you can log in to the site to manage your account:
- See your real-time account balance.
- Review account activity (contributions and payments).
- Check a searchable list of eligible healthcare expenses.
- Request reimbursement, pay a provider directly, and check the status of a payment.
- Order additional healthcare debit cards or report a lost or stolen card.
- Sign up for direct deposit of reimbursements into your personal bank account.
- Organize receipts and other documentation.
HealthEquity Visa debit card
The HealthEquity Visa debit card gives you instant access to your healthcare FSA dollars. Simply use your card when you want to pay for eligible expenses, such as deductibles, doctor’s office visit copays or coinsurance, prescription drugs, and eligible over-the-counter medications.
If you participate in the healthcare FSA, your account may come with a Visa healthcare debit card depending on how your employer has set up these accounts with HealthEquity. If a debit card is available to you, it will be mailed to you, along with your login credentials, from HealthEquity after you sign up for an account.
HealthEquity's mobile app
The HealthEquity mobile app, available free from both the Apple and Google app stores, provides tools to help manage your account on the go, from submitting receipts to checking on reimbursements or paying a bill. There’s even a tool that lets you scan a product’s barcode — while you’re shopping — to see if it’s an eligible expense.
Before downloading the app, you need to register online at the HealthEquity member portal; then use the username and password you created for the member portal to log in to the app.