Health care flex spending accounts help workers seeking a tax-smart way to pay medical expenses. Now there is even more appeal – Private MD offers helps worker plan flex spending account usefully with preventive care.
(PRWEB) November 11, 2005 -- Private MD reports good news for those who hold a Medical Flex Spending Account and who want to take health care into their own hands.
Health care flex spending accounts are big benefits for workers seeking a tax-smart way to pay some routine expenses. Now there is even more appeal – the popular medical FSA, where a worker sets aside money to pay for items such as health insurance co-pays and uninsured treatments such as vision care.
These accounts are set up by the employer and have an annual maximum limit of $5,000 and, until now, an annual “use-it-or-lose it” stipulation.
The Internal Revenue Service announced on May 18 that it will allow spending plan participants to make claims against their accounts for up to two months and 15 days after the end of their benefit year. That means employees on a calendar benefit year now can use their 2005 FSA contributions for expenses incurred as late as March 15, 2006.
“Medical Flex Spending Accounts have always been used for prevention-oriented procedures because few insurance policies cover advanced testing, although they are standard recommended screening procedures as set by national organizations like the American Heart Association and American Cancer Society,” says Otis Plunk, M.D., Medical Director of Private MD, which offers a different approach to health care.
Using modern screening and diagnostic tests, high-tech scanner technology and one-on-one counseling, Private MD tailors an individual health plan for clients, focusing on preventive care and early detection of disease.
“We are seeing an increasing number of patients using their remaining dollars in their flex spending accounts the last quarter of the year. Many plan to increase the amount of money they put in their accounts in 2006," noted Dr. Plunk. Many are not aware of the IRS changes for using this year’s dollars. He says Private MD's clients are pleased when they find out about the IRS changes and believe smart diagnostic testing is a good way to use their medical flex spending account.
Click for more information:
www.privatemd.net
U.S. Dept. of Labor – Bureau of Labor Statistics: Health Spending Accounts
###
|
