Can I Use HSA/FSA Funds for LASIK?

Vision correction surgery is no exception to the expensiveness of healthcare procedures. Even though you may have vision insurance, the likelihood that your policy will cover Lasik or other refractive surgeries is small.

Because Lasik surgery is not classified as a “necessity” and instead categorized as elective or cosmetic surgery, makes it a very difficult case to argue for insurance purposes. However, there is another option that you can take advantage of to help reduce the pricey cost of Lasik surgery.

If you have a Health Savings Account (HSA) or Flexible Savings Account (FSA), you might be in luck.

An HSA is a great tool to take advantage of tax-free savings that can be used to cover eligible medical expenses. HSA’s are available to individuals who are enrolled in a high-deductible health plan (HDHP).

The way an HSA works is that each year, enrollees will determine how much they want to contribute to their HSA account as long as they do not exceed the government-mandated limits.

This account is typically used by individuals to cover their “high” deductible in the event of a major medical incident but if no deductible is required throughout the course of the year, individuals can use these funds for other eligible medical expenses. Such expenses include copays, coinsurance and other treatments or procedures that are not covered by their insurance plan.

There are a few great tax advantages to establishing and contributing to an HSA account:

• Contributions are made pre-taxed and no tax is paid on the growth or when used as payment on eligible expenses.
• Also, since contributions are made pre-tax, it reduces your taxable income thus reducing the amount of taxes you pay.
• HSA’s can be invested into mutual funds, stocks or other investment tools.

An FSA is similar to an HSA but has a few differences like:

• Not required to be enrolled in an HDHP- basically, anyone can set up an FSA as a means to save money for a specific purpose.
• Smaller contribution limit- because there are more eligible expenses than an HSA, the government has set a smaller limit.  
• Contribution amounts can only be adjusted at open enrollment or change in employment or family status- the freedom and flexibility of changes are reduced as a result of
• Limited rollover unlike HSA’s- HSA has no limits on how much can be rolled over year after year, which makes it very appealing as an investment tool. FSA’s are only allowed to roll over $500 and anything over that is lost.

Long story short, Lasik and other elective vision correction surgeries are eligible to paid for using either an HSA or FSA.

Now that you have a better understanding of each type of savings account and you no longer have to search through Google using questions like, “can I use HSA for Lasik” and “is Lasik covered by FSA?” Utilizing the tax-advantages that each account offers can truly make Lasik very affordable.

Diamond Vision has been a leader in vision correction and now serves patients from 10 locations throughout the East Coast and Atlanta. Let our team of award-winning surgeons help you discover what clear vision truly is.

To discuss your Lasik financing options and our current vision correction specials, please contact us today to set up your free consultation. Visit Diamond Vision homepage for more information. One of our centres is the Atlanta Laser Eye Surgery Center.