3 Ways to Eliminate Flex Spending Headaches Almost Instantly

1.    Sign Up Early.

Set aside flex spending dollars now. Many employers set higher limits than you think on the amount of Flex Spending Dollars you can contribute each year, tax free, from your salary to pay for health care expenses like orthodontic treatment. Many employ- ers allow $2,500 or even $5000 of pre-tax earnings to be set aside in your flex plan.

Failing to sign up early could cost you more out of pocket orthodontic expenses, especially if your plan is not set up and ready before your orthodontic treatment begins. If you have a new plan, work with your plan administrator to sign up early for next year in order to maximize your savings!

2.    Make Your Employer  Aware of Family Status Change

Different employers have different sign up deadlines, but typically at the beginning of the year your employer asks how much money you want to contribute to your Flex Plan for the year. You only have one opportunity to enroll, unless you have a qualified “family status change.”

Family Status changes like marriage, birth, divorce, or loss of a spouse’s insurance coverage are qualified reasons to change your plan, and possibly add more coverage for orthodontic treatment.

3. Choose Wisely

Give some thought to calculating how much money to contribute this year. If you are considering orthodontic treatment, visit our office for a FREE consultation and our treatment coordinator can help you plan exactly how much money you should contribute to help reduce your out of pocket expenses.

If you put in more money than you need, by law, you lose the money! You have three months after the end of the calendar year to submit claims for eligible expenses from the previous calendar year. Any money left in your account after this three month period is lost.

4.    Use a Health SAVINGS Account

I know I said 3 Ways to Avoid Flex Spending Headaches, but this is a BONUS! Health Savings Accounts are another wonderful way to help fund medical and dental investments. Like Flex Spending Accounts, Health Savings Accounts can be contrib- uted to tax-free. However unlike Flex Spending Accounts, the funds in a Health Savings Account can be carried over and used the following year. This makes plan- ning much easier!

Many people are eligible to set up a Health Savings Account and are able to start contributing right away!