Pay Eligible Expenses with Pre-Tax Money

OU Health offers several tax-advantaged accounts that can help you save money when you pay eligible healthcare and/or dependent care expenses. Be sure to take a look at these options as you make your Open Enrollment decisions.

Flexible Spending Accounts (FSAs)

  • If you want an FSA in 2025, you must enroll during Open Enrollment. You’ll also elect how much you want to contribute to your FSA in 2025.
  • Your FSA contributions are deposited through convenient paycheck deductions.
  • A healthcare FSA can be used to pay eligible healthcare expenses, such as medical, dental and vision plan deductibles, copayments and coinsurance.
  • A limited purpose FSA can only be used to pay eligible dental and vision expenses. (Remember, you’ll have your health savings account money to help pay eligible healthcare expenses.)
  • A dependent care FSA can only be used to pay for eligible dependent care expenses, such as day care for a child or dependent elder so you and/or your spouse can work, look for work or attend school full time.
  • FSAs are “use-it-or-lose-it” annual accounts, with one exception: A limited portion of the funds that remain in your healthcare or limited purpose FSA as of the deadline for submitting 2025 reimbursement requests (March 31, 2026) may be be rolled over into a 2026 FSA for you. The IRS sets the allowed rollover amount each year.

Health Savings Account (HSA)

  • The HSA is paired with OU Health’s high-deductible health plan options: HDHP 1 or HDHP 2.
  • Your HSA is a special bank account opened in your name with Optum Financial.
  • You can use your HSA money to pay for eligible healthcare expenses incurred after opening the account.
  • OU Health makes contributions to your HSA (see chart below).
  • You can contribute to your HSA too (up to the combined company/employee annual IRS contribution limit shown below.) You elect your contribution amount during Open Enrollment and can change it at any time. The change will take effect in the next payroll cycle.
  • Unlike FSAs, there is no use-it-or-lose-it rule with the HSA. All unused HSA funds carry over from year to year.
  • The HSA funds are all yours, even if you leave or retire from OU Health. As long as you have proper documentation, you can use the funds at any time to pay for eligible expenses.
  • After age 65, you may be able to use your HSA funds to pay for Medicare, healthcare coverage, long-term care insurance, etc.
  • If you die before using the funds, your balance can go to your beneficiary. Be sure you have an up-to-date beneficiary designation for your HSA.

MORE DETAILS

These charts help you compare account features and understand the HSA contribution limits:

About the annual contribution limits…

  • The health savings and flexible spending accounts (HSA and FSAs) each have annual contribution limits set by the Internal Revenue Service.
  • Spouses covered by the same high-deductible health plan share one family HSA contribution limit. However, if you and your spouse each have your own ”self only” coverage in a high-deductible health plan, each of you can contribute up to the individual limit to your separate HSAs.
  • You may want to check with a tax advisor about the contribution limits.

Want to See How an FSA and/or HSA Can Help?

Use Flimp Decisions to compare your health plan options (see Step 2 in Your Enrollment Checklist). When you get your results, be sure to click the “Optimize your FSA” and “Optimize your HSA” links.

Visit Flimp Decisions now

No “use it or lose it” rule for the HSA…

  • All unused HSA funds carry over from year to year.
  • HSA funds are all yours, even if you leave or retire from OU Health. As long as you have proper documentation, you can use your HSA funds at any time to pay for (or get reimbursed for) eligible expenses.
  • After age 65, you may be able to use the funds in your HSA to pay for Medicare, healthcare coverage, long-term care insurance, etc.
  • If you die before using the funds, your balance can go to your beneficiary. So if you enroll in HDHP 1 or HDHP 2, be sure to complete your beneficiary designation at Optum Financial.

Your Enrollment Checklist

*If you do not act by Nov. 18, 2024, your 2024 benefits will roll over to 2025; except you must enroll by Nov. 18 if you want to contribute to a flexible spending account in 2025 and/or have coverage in accident, critical illness and/or hospital indemnity insurance for 2025.

No “use it or lose it” rule for the HSA…

  • All unused HSA funds carry over from year to year.
  • HSA funds are all yours, even if you leave or retire from OU Health. As long as you have proper documentation, you can use your HSA funds at any time to pay for (or get reimbursed for) eligible expenses.
  • After age 65, you may be able to use the funds in your HSA to pay for Medicare, healthcare coverage, long-term care insurance, etc.
  • If you die before using the funds, your balance can go to your beneficiary. So if you enroll in HDHP 1 or HDHP 2, be sure to complete your beneficiary designation at Optum Financial.