At a Year Connected, we are all about Finding ways to connect with each other and show we care. Well, once you fill your own cup, then next level is to check on the people in your home. Congratulations to YOU if one of those people is a precious little baby!
The little cuties sure do take up a lot of time (and budget)! Babies need constant love, warmth, and tending. I personally felt like, I always found myself needing something to help me through the next 30 minutes with my baby because her little body was changing and going through so much. It seemed like we would have a great day, get a schedule down and then she would switch it up on me every 3 days. Parenthood can be a riot!
As new parents, full of love, drained of energy, and on a tight budget, we wanted to make sure we were working smarter not harder. One area where we started being mindful is with our Flexible Spending Account (FSA) we had opted into with our employee benefits.
What is a Flexible Spending Account?
A Flexible Spending Account is a special savings account you can put money into from your gross wages before taxes are charged on your earnings. Therefore, it is your hard earned, tax-free money that you get to use!
Once the money is in the FSA Account, you can use it by paying out of pocket for a medical expense and submitting a claim for reimbursement or you can use the money directly with a FSA debit card that is issued by the company managing the funds.
An FSA is similar to a Health Savings Account, or HSA. This plan is typically offered to individuals who opt into a High Deductible health insurance program. For more information on health insurance, FSA, and HSA, speak with your employer or visit healthcare.gov.
How Much Can I spend and Where?
FSA Funds are limited to $3,050 per year per employer (As of Oct. 2023). If you’re married, your spouse can put up to $3,050 in an FSA with their employer too.
You can use funds in your FSA to pay for certain medical and dental expenses for you, your spouse if you’re married, and your dependents.
You can spend FSA funds to pay deductibles and copayments, but not for insurance premiums.
You can spend FSA funds on prescription medications, as well as over-the-counter medicines with a doctor's prescription. Reimbursements for insulin are allowed without a prescription.
THIS IS THE BIGGIE! FSAs may also be used to cover costs of medical equipment like crutches, supplies like bandages, and diagnostic devices like blood sugar test kits. You will be SHOCKED at what else qualifies! See Below!
Get a list of generally permitted medical and dental expenses from the IRS.
What to do when you have FSA money left over at the end of the year?
Typically, FSA money needs to be spent by the end of the calendar year, December 31. You can continue to file claims for a few months into the new year (definitely talk to your employer and FSA manager for details on your plan).
The tricky part is many people have money left over at the end of the year and DON”T SPEND IT! Ah! They forfeit hard earned dollars by not utilizing it. That is practically like losing a gift card that could be spent on things you definitely need for you family and perhaps that new, cute little babe you are holding right now!
The great news is that many common baby products are eligible to be purchased using FSA and HSA funds. I like to shop on Amazon for these because there is an tag line that reads “FSA and HSA Eligible” on the products you can purchase. There is no question about if certain products will make the cut. Super Easy!
3 Steps to Purchasing FSA Products on Amazon
Check out my list of FSA eligible Baby Products below. I was SHOCKED to see how many cool baby items were eligible! Click the link to add them to your Amazon cart. I like to make one order of only FSA products just to keep the purchase simple.
Add your FSA debit card as a payment method on your amazon account. This is as easy as adding any debit card.
Note: If you do not have an FSA debit card, then you can pay with a different method of payment and submit your receipt as a claim to your FSA Company.
Chek out Now! And like magic, those items have been purchased with your tax-free, hard earned money.
25 Baby Items to Purchase with Tax-Free, FSA Money!
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