If you have one of these accounts already set up, hearing aids are reimbursed in the same way as any other covered medical expense, such as eyeglasses or dental work. If you have an HSA credit card, you would just pay for the hearing aids with your credit card. Embrace Hearing accepts all HSA credit and debit cards.

I have an FSA/HSA account but I don’t have enough money in it to pay for hearing aids. What should I do?

If you need hearing aids but don’t have sufficient funds in your account, speak to your plan holder about increasing your deposit to cover the hearing aids you are looking for. Remember these funds are deposited tax free so you can still save significantly on your aids.

If you are covered under an employer’s health insurance plan, you may have access to a flexible spending account (FSA) or a health savings account (HSA), where you can store funds intended for out-of-pocket medical expenses. The funds in these accounts can be used for medical costs not covered by your insurance, including buying hearing aids.

An HSA/FSA allows account holders to pay for current health care expenses and save for those in the future. Its advantage is that contributions are tax-deductible, or if made through a payroll deduction, are pre-tax. Second, the interest earned on the account balance is tax-free.

You deposit money as a payroll deduction (FSA) or directly (HSA). When it comes time to actually make the purchase, it’s easy to access the funds in your account. Often you can access your FSA and HSA funds via a debit card, which can be used when you make your purchase. If you don’t have access to a debit card, you can submit receipts from your purchases to your insurance company or employer for reimbursement from your account. Since this is your money simply stored in an outside account, there is never a debate about how much insurance companies will reimburse, as long as it’s a qualified expense.