Healthcare Flexible Spending Account (HC-FSA)

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When you enroll in this account you contribute money from your paycheck before taxes are withheld. You then use this money to reimburse yourself with tax-free dollars for certain health care expenses that are not payable under any benefit plan (like medical and dental plan deductibles, coinsurance or co-payments, orthodontia services, lasik surgery, etc.).

Benefit Strategies, LLC is our employee benefits third party administration firm.

You can access your Flexible Spending Account online at the new website https://benstrat.navigatorsuite.com/.

Login using the following:

Username: Your username will be your first name initial followed by your full last name and the last four digits of your social security number (e.g. jdoel1234).

Password: changeme
If this is your first time logging into the system, use changeme as your password. You will then be instructed by the system to create a new and unique password.

IRS Restrictions
Because FSAs provide tax advantages, the IRS imposes certain restrictions on their use. These include the following:

Use-It-Or-Lose-It Rule
You must use all of the money in your FSA each calendar year for eligible expenses incurred during that calendar year. Generally, money remaining in a FSA after December 31 will be forfeited. However, WHOI allows for the IRS approved 2-1/2 month grace-period which allows for participants to incur expenses beyond December 31 up through March 15 of the following calendar year to apply to the prior year's FSA. All participants have until March 31 to submit for reimbursement expenses for the previous year's FSA, including any eligible expenses incurred during the 2-1/2 month grace period. Money remaining in your account after March 31 will be forfeited.
Like your other pre-tax contribution elections, you may not change your FSA contribution amount unless you have had a qualified change in status as defined by the IRS.

To avoid losing any of your contributions as a result of these IRS provisions, you should carefully estimate your anticipated expenses for the coming year when you decide how much you will contribute to the FSA.

Contribution Amounts
In 2012, you may contribute up to $5,000 per calendar year if you are a single head of household or if you are married and filing a joint tax return. If you are married and filing separately, you may contribute up to $2,500 per calendar year. Your contributions may not exceed your annual earned income or that of your spouse, whichever is less.

IMPORTANT CHANGE EFFECTIVE JANUARY 1, 2013
Effective for plan years beginning on January 1, 2013, under the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (PPACA), employees will be limited to contributing up to $2,500 (reduced from $5,000 in previous years) into a Health-FSA. Thereafter, this limit will be indexed for inflation every year.

We have confirmed with Benefit Strategies, our third-party administrator for our Health FSA plan, that each spouse (regardless of whether they are working for the same employer or not) may each contribute up to the $2,500 limit in 2013. We have further confirmed with Benefit Strategies that there will be no tax consequences for married couples filing jointly who will both contribute to the Health FSA in 2013 and whose combined contributions exceed the $2,500 annual limit. Finally, as this relates to an employee’s tax status, we would always recommend and advise our employees to speak with a tax consultant.

Last updated: February 25, 2013

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