Use it or Lose it --Using Flexible Spending Accounts for Alternative Health

Do you have HSA/FSA Health Savings or Flexible Spending Accounts through your employer? Do you have an excess balance remaining in your account from last year? You may be in luck due to the FSA grace period--You have extra time to make a claim against your account**. If you were thinking about an alternative health service and it was not covered by your medical insurance, chances are if you are seeing a provider for a medical condition, with a doctor's referral, you can use your FSA money for payment! Under the IRS guidelines cosmetic procedures such as weight loss services to look better would not qualify, however if your weight is a causal or contributing factor to Diabetes, Heart Disease, Hypertension etc--you could have weight loss Hypnosis to treat your condition. You could use your account to pay for Smoking Cessation, Weight Loss, Stress Management and more. If you have an account for this year--you can use it fund treatment for your holistic medical needs. For more information on how you can use your HSA/FSA contributions at Soul Centered Health--email me at soulcenteredhealth@yahoo.com

**Important Note: You will FORFEIT any money that you do not use in your account(s) by the end of the Benefit Period. This is known as the “use or lose” rule. The Grace Period provides you with an additional 2 ½ months (January 1 to March 15) to incur expenses against your prior year's account. You have until midnight Eastern Time on April 30 following the end of the Benefit Period to file claims for reimbursement for eligible expenses incurred during the previous Benefit Period. We encourage you to carefully plan how much money to contribute to your account(s). The FSAFEDS Calculator at www.FSAFEDS.com can help you calculate allotments based on your individual situation, as well as indicate your potential tax savings. Neither OPM, nor your employing agency, has the authority to make any exception to this IRS rule.