+ 1 Flex Spending for blood work
First off I would like to explain what flex spending is. Flex spending is an account that your employer should be offering. It's an account you put money in and you can use it on medical services or supplies. Also child care.
How does it work. First off you elect how much you want to contribute over the course of the year. So say you want to put 500 in for the year. Your employer takes it out of your check throughout the course of the year. But on January 1st the whole amount is available for you. The catch is you need to spend the whole amount before the end of the year or you lose it.
I know get to the point already.
So as I am sitting in line at Wal-Mart with a cart full of sunscreen band aids and bug spray and I'm getting funny looks for buying 300 bucks worth of sunscreen in December I thought I wonder what else could I use the rest of my flex money for. I have 1500 that I put aside for Lasik eye surgery only to find out I can't have the surgery. And I thought damn I wish I could use it on juice. But I don't have a script for that. So I thought maybe I could use it on blood work and come to find out that yes it a reimbursable expense. So I can use some flex money for blood work meaning more moneyfor juice .
So if you have flex money available you better get to spending it and if you don't you should check into getting set up before the end of the year.
Edit . It's pretax dollars too
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A little unknown fact too, is that if you set up a Flex account with your employer and leave the company on January 2...you still get the whole amount. That's their downside.
Of course if you stay all year and don't use it up, they get the unused portion. So your $300 worth of sunscreen makes sense.
Even better if you are on a High Deductible Medical Plan you can contribute to an Health Savings Account. The best part about an HSA is that you don't use it if you don't lose it. Carries over to the following year. You simply write off the amount of your qualified medical expenses funded through your HSA when you do your taxes for the year. Although you should have receipts if you are ever audited, you don't need to provide any proof at the time of filing.
Best part of an HSA is that you can fund medical expenses that may not be covered under your insurance plan. For example, wifey had Lasix last year and I payed for it through my HSA and wrote it off on my taxes.
Pretty much provides all the same benefits and more of an FSA but few restrictions except for the fact that you must be on a High Deductible Medical Plan.
Very good point. But for someone who has young kids as I do, the high deductible plan doesn't work.
Depends. On the traditional plan at my company once you add the premiums, deductible and co-pays it is actually more expensive than the high deductible so it actually makes more sense to go with the high deductible. Also, by law, wellness visits are covered at 100% and deductibles don't apply. I have 3 kids, my wife and I on the plan.
Ace VenturaWow, McDonalds provides some pretty good health insurance these days.
If he worked there his name would be McFit
Ace VenturaLol
Ace VenturaGood post! I wouldn't have even thought of that.
Thanks. Also most of the companies give you a credit card for it so you don't have to get reimbursed. But sometimes they require you to send.a copy of the reeceipt in so I just keep a file throughout the year
Very cool. I don't currently use a FSA but have thought about it. This might have changed my mind. Thanks for the info.
Also, can you use it for most OTC pharmacy items??
You can still use it for ibuprofen and other over the counter pain and cold meds bit you have to get your doc to sign off on it.
Ace VenturaUntil a few years ago, you could use it for ibuprofen and such. They cut some of that stuff out. :~\