Health Savings Account

**Xiphos** · 06-09-10, 12:09 PM

Anybody here have an HSA? For those who don't know, you have pretax income withheld from your paycheck for the purposes of health care. I get a debit card that is connected to my HSA account. I use that card to pay for medical expenses. You can spend it on co-pays, medical bills, prescription medication, and over the counter drugs like Advil or Tylenol.

I got this message about my HSA account:

As you may be aware, the President recently signed into law the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (the Act). While the broad scope of the Act has been well reported, we want to make sure that you are aware of the effect the law will have on your WageWorks health care account.

First, there is no change until January 1, 2011. However, beginning January 1, 2011, a doctor's prescription will be required in order for you to receive reimbursement of expenses incurred when purchasing certain commonly used over-the-counter (OTC) medicines like Claritin, Advil and Robitussin cough syrup. Because the new law requires a prescription for these types of items before we can reimburse you from your account, you will no longer be able to make these purchases using your Health Care Card (Card).

You will continue to be able to use your Card at pharmacies and stores for prescriptions, band-aids and other OTC medical items and at providers for office visits, copayments and eligible health care, vision and dental procedures and services.

We want to emphasize that the change will not take place until January 1, 2011. Until that date, you can still use your Card for all eligible OTC items without a doctor's prescription.

WageWorks is committed to helping you understand the changes, what they mean for your account and how they may affect your future health care expense planning. To that end, watch for additional communications to come.

Thanks to the boondoggle health care bill, now I won't be able to use the HSA on over the counter stuff unless I go to the doctor and get a prescription. The $20 doctor co-pay completely rules out whatever pre-tax benefit I get buying a fucking bottle of Advil on the HSA.

**cajunguy** · 06-09-10, 01:08 PM

We have a similar plan at my department.

You put in X dollars per month and it's available for you throughout the year to pay for doctor's visits, scripts, etc.

Great if your spending and your savings equal out.

BUT . . .

If you don't spend what you have put into it throughout the year, at year's end, YOU LOSE WHATEVER IS LEFT IN THE ACCOUNT!

WTF?

IT'S MY FREAKIN' MONEY!! And you're gonna take whatever is left over away from me? I don't THINK so!

Needless to say, there aren't many of our employees participating in the "plan".

.

**Xiphos** · 06-09-10, 01:11 PM

Originally Posted by cajunguy

Needless to say, there aren't many of our employees participating in the "plan".

Use it or lose it is common. We're careful to set an amount we know we'll spend. So far we've always maxed it out.

**ChesCopPodz** · 06-09-10, 06:07 PM

Never did it until the wife got pregnant. Used it for her pregnancy care, the birth, and his first few doctors visits. This year I opted out again. We've never really gone to the doctor enough to justify risking the loss. I only used it when I was sure I'd use it all.

**121Traffic** · 06-09-10, 06:09 PM

Xiphos, that OTC nix is definitely a real shitter. We just had our semi-annual HR bried the other day, and this was one of the issues covered.

Other than that, seems like a good program to use when you KNOW you will have some medical bills coming up. I might use it next year for LASIK.

**Cidp24** · 06-09-10, 06:50 PM

Originally Posted by cajunguy

We have a similar plan at my department.

You put in X dollars per month and it's available for you throughout the year to pay for doctor's visits, scripts, etc.

Great if your spending and your savings equal out.

BUT . . .

If you don't spend what you have put into it throughout the year, at year's end, YOU LOSE WHATEVER IS LEFT IN THE ACCOUNT!

WTF?

IT'S MY FREAKIN' MONEY!! And you're gonna take whatever is left over away from me? I don't THINK so!

Needless to say, there aren't many of our employees participating in the "plan".

.

Same here. I usually spend it all though if for nothing else, contacts. I can always buy a couple of extra boxes at the end of the year and the account pays it.

**MacLean** · 06-09-10, 06:56 PM

Stand in line with everyone else, comrade.

**jmur5074** · 06-09-10, 10:22 PM

What a bunch of bullshit. I have an HSA too and haven't been informed of that yet. Good God this is fucking ridiculous.

And my HSA is saving my ass right now. My fiance needs new hearing aids ($5,000+) and I found out from HR that I can use my HSA to cover her hearing aids once we get married (next month).

I can cover them completely with my savings in there.

So....like I said, saving my ass.

**Cidp24** · 06-09-10, 10:27 PM

Originally Posted by jmur5074

What a bunch of bullshit. I have an HSA too and haven't been informed of that yet. Good God this is fucking ridiculous.

And my HSA is saving my ass right now. My fiance needs new hearing aids ($5,000+) and I found out from HR that I can use my HSA to cover her hearing aids once we get married (next month).

I can cover them completely with my savings in there.

So....like I said, saving my ass.

Off topic but check into your states systems. Here it is called Vocational Rehabilitation. They will pay for hearing aids if the person works and even remotely needs to hear in the job.

**Buttercup** · 06-09-10, 10:47 PM

Originally Posted by 121Traffic

Xiphos, that OTC nix is definitely a real shitter. We just had our semi-annual HR bried the other day, and this was one of the issues covered.

Other than that, seems like a good program to use when you KNOW you will have some medical bills coming up. I might use it next year for LASIK.

My employer contributes the funds to our HSA, we get $3000 annually, use it or lose it. I used mine for LASIK a few years ago.