If you have benefits through your employer, that’s great—but have you considered throwing a Flexible Spending Account into the mix to help decrease health costs?
A Flexible Spending Account, also known as an FSA, is a program that employees can opt-in to. It allows you to deduct your contributions pre-tax into an account that can help pay for qualified medical purchases. Simply put, it’s putting some of your money away so that it can be used, before being taxed, on approved healthcare costs, which can include some dental costs. You can tuck away $2,500 per year, per employer, and up to $500 can be rolled over to the following year.
Many people do not understand FSA’s or what qualifies as approved medical purchases, so we’re here to lay down the ABC’s of your FSA:
A is for Anesthesiology
If a dental appointment included a procedure using anesthesia, you can use your FSA to pay the cost. If you have dental benefits, some of those costs may be already covered, so be sure to take a look at what’s included in your dental plan.
B is for Braces
Even when you have benefits for orthodontia, costs for a family can quickly add up. You can use funds in your FSA to help pay for certain health and dental expenses for you, your spouse, and your dependents. Included in this are necessary orthodontia services, such as braces. If braces are in the not too distant future for someone in your life, be sure to check out our value-added Orthodontic Discount Program.
C is for Coinsurance and Copays
Costs such as coinsurance and copays may be paid for using your FSA. These costs will vary depending on the coverage specifics of your plan. If you have questions about those costs, be sure to contact your Human Resources Administrator or log in to your account on our website.
Of course, we could run through the entire alphabet outlining what you can use your Flexible Spending Account funds on—such as Deductibles, Eye exams and Fluoride treatments, but we recommend you visit HealthCare.gov to learn more or schedule a meeting with your HR administrator to discuss the benefits of your FSA.
