Submitted by Shelby D Burns Sun 02/24/2013
Most companies now offer Medical Flexible Spending Accounts or Medical FSA. In order to take advantage of this benefit, you must elect an amount to be withdrawn from your pretax pay and put into a medical savings account which is managed by a third party. For 2013 the maximum amount you can hold tax free is $2500. Throughout the year, submit your receipts from qualified medical expenses for reimbursement. The only catch is that you all reimbursements must be for expenses incurred during that tax year or you lose the money. Many expenses qualify: medical co-pays, out of network doctor expenses, lab work, prescription drugs, dental work, and fertility treatment. Fertility drugs The list of qualifying expenses is long and all related to health and medical costs. All out-of-pocket expenses for prescription drugs qualify including all prescription drugs required or recommended for fertility treatment. If you are getting close to the end of the tax year and you have not used all the dollars in your Medical FSA and you know you will continue to take prescription drugs as part of your fertility treatment into the next year, ask your doctor to write your next year’s prescriptions so you can get reimbursed for the full amount you have withheld. As of 2011, over-the-counter drugs do not qualify. Lifestyle changes to improve fertility If your doctor has recommended lifestyle changes to support your fertility treatment, any program a doctor has recommended qualifies for reimbursement. This includes smoking cessation and weight loss programs (but not food). Some travelling costs If there is not a fertility treatment center in your town, some of the travel costs can be reimbursed through the Medical FSA. Like all other expenses, the IRS closely regulates this so be sure to check with the administrator of your plan before submitting all the expenses. If you attend a conference on infertility in order to educate yourself about your own condition, the cost for admission is reimbursable. Pregnancy test kits and fertility treatments Expenses related to giving birth qualify. Thee out-of-pocket expense for fertility treatment can be quite high and the ability to pay with pretax dollars will help offset the cost. Pregnancy test kits, fertility monitors and all types of fertility treatments for men and women qualify. Source: HealthNet; Trisha Torrey, Patient Empowerment
