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Pre-Tax Advantages
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Flexible Spending Accounts
What is a Flexible Spending Account and How Does it Work?
A Flexible Spending Account (FSA) is a special bank account for your healthcare and dependent care (childcare) expenses. Using an FSA has one big advantage – it helps you save money. Every dollar contributed to an FSA is never taxed, which means you keep the 24-40% that is usually withheld on that money. Participating is simple; you make contributions through convenient payroll deductions spread evenly across the year. You then use your FSA money to pay for any healthcare or dependent care expenses not covered by your insurance plan. Plan maximums for Plan Year 2012 are:
Medical FSA Maximum - $6,000
Dependent Care FSA Maximum - $5,000
The elected amount will be deducted once a month from payroll for professional employees and the amount will be deducted out of the first payroll for classified employees, equally for the twelve months in this plan year. Using your FSA money is also easy with the ASI debit card that works just like a typical bank card. Present the card anywhere Visa is accepted and the amount will be automatically deducted from your FSA. You may pay for your co-pay, co-insurance, and prescriptions using this card. Please note that the debit card may not work at pharmacies within grocery or department stores. Other eligible expenses include: Deductible, chiropractic work, dental work (excluding cosmetic procedures such as teeth bleaching and veneers), orthodontics, eyeglasses, contact lenses, and some over-the-counter medications (please check with ASI regarding this).
A comparison of the Health Savings Account, Health Reimbursement Arrangement and Medical Flexible Spending Account is available online at:
http://www.csn.edu/PDFFiles/HR/HSA_HRA_FSA.pdf
ASI Claim Form [pdf]
Human Resources information contained on the World Wide Web is in no way to be interpreted as a contract between the College of Southern Nevada and any of its employees. This information is provided as a service to the CSN community and will change as CSN changes. From time to time, CSN must modify its policies. Information is current as of the time of its presentation and may be subject to change or repeal at any time, with or without notice, at the discretion of CSN. |
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