I must say that in the original piece that I had just
completed and thought, time to take a breather until the next project when I received
something in the mail and thought…here we go again. The company shoots out the next part of their
near plans; the Flexible Spending Accounts.
For those like myself, I have really never heard of Flexible Spending
Accounts or why would I need to have one; well since the company purposed it
then I have a responsibility to me and my family to do the research into this
and find the “wolf in sheep’s clothing.”
In my research I found just what that clothing looked like
and it’s called “USE –IT-OR-LOSE-IT.”
The clause says if there is any money left over in the plan at years
end, that money is forfeit, good God! The
company says, “For example, if you elect
the $2500 health FSA maximum in 2014, but had $500 carryover from 2013, you would
have access to $3000 during the 2014 calendar year. At the end of 2014, you
will be allowed to carryover a maximum of $500 of any unused health FSA funds.”
That means I would stand to lose
$2500 if I do not use the account in that calendar year, and guess who keeps
the money…you guessed right, the company and would they reimburse you the
money, take another guess…NO! They have
not obligation to give the money back.
So Brothers and Sisters, make sure you do more research into
the FSA and see if it is something that may suit your medical needs, just
remember at this moment we are currently under a 90/10 plan so most may not
need this if relatively healthy (knock on wood). But make sure that your fill out the form and
send it back to the company, just so there are no shenanigans on their part in
trying to shove this down our throats. I
also included some articles that may help in your decision making. Stay strong.
The
Trouble with (In)flexible Spending Accounts:
But
the pièce de résistance is that any unspent money left over in the accounts at
year’s end reverts to the employer, who is free to spend it on anything other
than returning it to the employee.
What
You Need to Know About FSAs
http://abcnews.go.com/
http://abcnews.go.com/
As
helpful as these accounts are, they have one big drawback: the
use-it-or-lose-it requirement that costs workers millions of dollars each year.
The law requires workers to spend FSA contributions by the end of the company's
benefit year, which in most cases is Dec. 31. Any leftover account amount is
forfeited.
New Healthcare Flexible Spending Account Rules For 2013, Use-It-Or Lose-It Still Undecided
The
dreaded use-it-or-lose-it rule says that dollars left in FSAs at the end of the
plan year are forfeited. (Some employers allow a grace period of 2 months and
15 days after the plan year to use up the money.) The rule encourages wasteful
spending – buying another pair of prescription sunglasses to use up FSA money.
And it discourages employees from using the accounts in the first place for
fear of leaving money on the table. Unused dollars exceed $500 for more than
20% of those forfeiting FSA money (40% of participants forfeit at least $1),
according to the Employers Council On Flexible Compensation.
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