If you have a flexible spending
account and are considering laser vision correction, now is the time to take
advantage of it!
A flexible
spending account (FSA) allows an employee to set aside pre-tax dollars to cover
qualified out-of-pocket healthcare expenses.
Qualified expenses include laser vision correction. These contributions are not subject to
payroll taxes, which can result in substantial savings. Here’s how it works. Employees are either given an FSA debit card
which they can use to pay directly for services using their FSA funds, or they
pay out of pocket and then submit a receipt to their employer for reimbursement
from their FSA account.
Currently,
there is no legal limit to what employees can contribute to their FSA and 78%
of large employers set it at $5,000 or higher.[i] Starting in 2013, when the Affordable
Care Act kicks in, the maximum annual FSA contribution for each employee will
be capped at $2,500.[ii] This cap goes into effect based on the
calendar year of your particular plan. Here’s
something else to think about: An
earlier version of the Affordable Care Act plan called for eliminating FSA’s
altogether, and this could come up again.[iii]
There is also a deadline for making contributions to an
FSA plan. For most plans that deadline
is between October and December for the following calendar year. This means you would have to contribute in
2012 in order to have access to the funds in 2013. Be sure to ask your plan’s administrator,
which would typically be your human resources director, what the deadline is
for your particular plan. Another
important aspect of an FSA is the “use-it-or-lose-it” rule. This means unused money left in the account
at the end of the calendar year for the plan is forfeited. This is especially important for those of you
who are considering using flex spending dollars for laser vision correction. If you deposit money into your FSA account
for LASIK or PRK, and are not a suitable candidate, you will either lose that
money or be forced to find creative ways to spend it on healthcare. Therefore, it’s best to have a consultation
to determine your candidacy for laser vision correction, or any elective
procedure, before making a contribution to your FSA plan.
The good news is our consultations at Mandel Vision are
FREE and extremely informative! So, you
have nothing to lose by scheduling your laser vision correction consultation
with Dr. Mandel. Better yet, you could
save yourself a very costly mistake!
Call our office at 212-734-0111 today to schedule your free consultation.
