Health Savings Accounts (HSA) and Flexible Spending Accounts (FSA) help you save for qualified medical expenses. However, the two vary in terms of benefits and eligibility.
Which account is right for you?
Health Savings Account (HSA)
An HSA isn’t available to everyone. You’re eligible to participate only if you meet all of the following criteria:
- You are enrolled in the High Deductible Health Plan (HDHP).
- You are not enrolled in any other non-HDHP medical plan, including Medicare, Medicaid, or TRICARE.
- You cannot be claimed as a dependent on another person’s tax return.
- Neither you nor your spouse are enrolled in a Health Care General Purpose FSA (only a Limited Purpose FSA is allowed).
A Health Savings Account (HSA) is an easy way to pay for healthcare expenses that you have today and save for expenses you may have in the future.
If you currently have an HSA with another bank and would like to transfer or rollover the funds, please review the below HSA Transfer Request Form.
See IRS Publication 502, “Medical & Dental Expenses” for a complete list of expenses covered by your HSA.
How the High Deductible Health Plan with HSA Works
Employees enrolling in the HDHP will receive an HSA contribution from Fuze Health ($450/year if enrolling by yourself, $900/year with Spouse or Child and $1,200/year if enrolling with Children or Family) to help offset your annual deductible, cover qualified medical/dental/vision expenses or save for the future. The annualized contributions will be deposited based on your payroll frequency. Contributions to your HSA are pre-tax contributions, which lower your taxable wages. The HSA employer contribution is split up over 12 monthly pay periods. If you start after January 1st, the employer HSA contribution is pro-rated amongst the remaining pay periods in the year.
Your HSA will automatically open with Optum when you enroll in the HDHP. Unused funds roll over every year and are owned 100% by you; unused HSA funds do not return to Fuze Health, and they can be invested in several mutual funds or a brokerage account.
You can contribute pre-tax funds to your HSA in addition to Fuze Health’s contribution up to the IRS annual limit. The IRS maximum HSA contribution for 2026 is $4,400 for individuals, $8,750 for families. If you are a new hire and enroll in the HDHP with an effective date before 12/1, you can make a full year contribution for that year. However, you must then stay enrolled in an eligible HDHP for the entirety of the following calendar year or risk a tax penalty.
Your HSA account is set up automatically after you enroll.
Four reasons to love an HSA
01
Tax-free. No federal tax on contributions, or state tax in most states. Withdrawals are also tax-free as long as they’re for eligible healthcare expenses.
02
No “use it or lose it.” Your balance rolls over from year to year. You own the account and can continue to use it even if you change medical plans or leave the company.
03
Use it now or later. Use your HSA for healthcare expenses you have today or save it to use in the future.
04
Boosts retirement savings. After you retire, you can use your HSA for healthcare expenses tax-free, or for regular living expenses, taxable but no penalties.
Health Care Flexible Spending Account (FSA)
You don’t have to enroll in one of our medical plans to participate in the Health Care FSA. However, if you are enrolled in the HDHP plan and you contribute to an HSA, you can only participate in the “Limited Purpose” FSA for dental and vision expenses.
Set aside healthcare dollars for the coming year
- A Health Care FSA allows you to set aside tax-free money to pay for healthcare expenses you expect to have over the coming year
How Health Care FSA works
- You estimate what you and your family’s out-of-pocket costs will be for the coming year. Eligible expenses include office visits, surgery, dental and vision expenses, prescriptions, even eligible drugstore items.
- You can contribute up to $3,400, the annual limit set by the IRS. Contributions are deducted from your pay pretax, meaning no federal or state tax on that amount.
- During the year, you can use your FSA debit card to pay for services and products. Withdrawals are tax-free as long as they’re for eligible healthcare expenses.
Plan Year and Claim Filing Deadlines for Flexible Spending Accounts (FSA):
The plan year runs from January 1, 2026, to December 31, 2026. FSA plans adhere to the basic "use it or lose it" rule. However, the Medical FSA plan has a $680 rollover provision from one plan year to the next. Any amount above the $680 rollover provision will be forfeited. To ensure reimbursement, all out-of-pocket claims incurred during the plan year must be submitted within 90 days from the end of the plan year.
For Active Employees:
All claims for eligible expenses incurred within the plan year must be submitted by March 31, 2027 (90 days after the plan year ends).
For Employees Who Terminate Mid-Year:
If you terminate employment mid-year, you have 90 days from your date of termination to submit claims for eligible expenses incurred prior to your termination date.
Flex Health Care FSA:
- You may be eligible to elect COBRA coverage for your Flex Health Care Reimbursement account, allowing continued access for the remainder of the plan year.
- To elect COBRA, you must do so within the COBRA election period.
- Your Flex Health Care Reimbursement Account must be underspent (more premiums paid than claims submitted) at the time of termination to be eligible for COBRA continuation.
Dependent Care FSA
Here's how the Dependent FSA works
You set aside money from your paycheck, before taxes, to pay for work-related day care expenses. Eligible expenses include not only child care, but also before and after school care programs, preschool, and summer day camp for children under age 13. The account can also be used for day care for a spouse or other adult dependent who lives with you and is physically or mentally incapable of self-care.
If married, it is important to remember that to be eligible for this benefit a few additional things must be true: 1) your spouse is also employed, 2) your spouse is a full-time student, or 3) your spouse is incapable of self-care.
You can set aside up to $7,500 per household per year. You can pay your dependent care provider directly from your FSA account, or you can submit claims to get reimbursed for eligible dependent care expenses you pay out of pocket.
Plan Year and Claim Filing Deadlines for Flexible Spending Accounts (FSA):
The plan year runs from January 1, 2026, to December 31, 2026. FSA plans adhere to the basic "use it or lose it" rule, meaning any unused funds will be forfeited. To ensure reimbursement, all out-of-pocket claims incurred during the plan year must be submitted within 90 days from the end of the plan year.
For Active Employees:
All claims for eligible expenses incurred within the plan year must be submitted by March 31, 2027 (90 days after the plan year ends).
For Employees Who Terminate Mid-Year:
If you terminate employment mid-year, you have 90 days from your date of termination to submit claims for eligible expenses incurred prior to your termination date.
Dependent Care accounts are not eligible for COBRA continuation.
Estimate carefully! You can’t change your FSA election amount mid-year unless you experience a qualifying event. Money contributed to an FSA must be used for expenses incurred during the same plan year. Unspent funds will be forfeited.
If you want to participate in the FSA for 2026, you must ACTIVELY enroll!
Lifestyle Spending Accounts
Lifestyle spending accounts
Lifestyle spending accounts offer employer-funded assistance for life's expenses, helping to improve employees' work-life balance.
Fuze Health will provide $25 a month for the Lifestyle Spending Accounts.
How it works: Employees pay for expenses out of pocket and submit reimbursement claims online or using the mobile App. After claim is submitted and processed, expenses are reimbursed post-tax through payroll. It might take 2-3 payrolls for the reimbursement to appear.
Extra support for your personal life
For reimbursements, you can simply submit claims online or through the Optum Financial mobile app.
Lifestyle account expense examples
A lifestyle account may include expenses like these, depending on your employer's plan design.
Wellness and education
- Wellness — fitness classes, gym memberships, nutrition counseling, sports leagues, ski passes, meditation and fitness equipment
- Financial planning — estate planning, financial planning and basic living expenses
- Adult education — career education, adult learning and personal enrichment
- College admissions preparation — coaching, counseling, seminars and tools
Commuter Benefits
As a Fuze Health employee, you can set aside pre-tax funds to pay for eligible public transportation and parking expenses associated with your commute to and from work.
Please note: Remote employees are not eligible for commuter benefits, as these benefits are intended only for work-related commuting expenses.
The maximum that you can contribute pre-tax each month is $340 for public transportation and $340 for parking.
You will enter your parking and transit orders online via your Optum account, and the cost of your orders will be automatically deducted from your paycheck on a pre-tax basis.
No annual enrollment is needed. Simply submit your orders online anytime during the plan year.
You can even set up recurring orders that automatically generate your transit order or pay your contracted parking vendor. If your commuting needs change, you can adjust or cancel your order monthly.
How do I order online?
Sign in to your online account and select commuter benefits.
- Select the transit or parking services you want
- Place Order by the 10th of the month for the upcoming month (Example – Deadline for February Orders is January 10th)
- Receive your order at home by mail
- The cost of your orders, within the IRS limits, are automatically deducted from your paycheck pre-tax
Disclaimer: This presentation provides a summary of the employee benefit programs offered by Fuze Health. Should any discrepancies arise, please refer to the actual plan documents, which supersede this presentation. Once enrolled, you will receive a Combined Evidence of Coverage and Disclosure Form detailing the exclusions, limitations, and the full range of covered services of your plan.