Benefit Bulletins
Access Your Account Information Online
By logging in with a username and password, you can access personalized information about your Flexible Spending Account (FSA) or Health Reimbursement Arrangement (HRA), 24 hours a day. If you prefer doing business online to calling a Customer Service Representative, you’ll appreciate the convenience of our consumer portal.
Whether you have an FSA or HRA, you can find everything you need on our website.
- View FAQs and helpful fliers.
- Download claim forms, direct deposit forms, and more.
- Get the latest regulatory and industry news on FSAs and HRAs.
- View a list of eligible expenses.
Log into your account to:
- File a claim online (requires capability to upload scanned documentation).
- Access information on most reimbursement payments, including payment dates and amounts.
- See payment details, including account type and form of payment.
- View your recently processed claims along with their payment status.
- Check your account balances, annual election, and year-to-date deposits.
- Sign up for direct deposit for quicker reimbursements of claims.
- Change your address and other personal information online.
- Create basic reports.
Flexible Spending Accounts: Common Questions
When do I have access to the money in my account?
Once you make your annual election during open enrollment and are set up in our system, you have access to the entire amount at the beginning of the plan year for health-related expense (HRE). Your employer will then deduct the election amount from your paychecks in equal amounts throughout the year.
If you have enrolled in dependent care expenses (DCE), reimbursement is available as payroll contributions are received and posted to your account. You can log into the consumer portal to see the available balances for both your HRE and DCE.
What if I have money left in my account at the end of the year?
Unless your employer has elected the carryover provision for their FSA plan, IRS regulations require eligible expenses to be incurred within your plan year dates and submitted for reimbursement within the designated submission period. Without the carryover provision, unused funds are subject to the “use it or lose it” rule. We will send you a reminder letter at the end of your plan year to advise you of any available balance in your account before the plan year ends. Please be sure to submit all eligible claims within the designated submission period to avoid losing your elected funds.
If my FSA has a grace period or carryover provision, am I eligible to enroll in an HSA plan?
If you are covered under a general-purpose health FSA, you are not eligible to enroll in an HSA plan. This is true even if the general-purpose health FSA consists only of unused amounts from a prior year due to a grace period or carryover provision. However, if you are enrolled in a limited health FSA or HRA (covering only dental, vision, and preventive care expenses), you may still be eligible to participate in the HSA plan.
Another important thing to remember is that a general-purpose health FSA or HRA constitutes family coverage since it is available to reimburse the qualified medical expenses for you, your spouse, and dependents. Because of this, if either spouse participates in a general-purpose health FSA or HRA, neither spouse will be eligible to contribute to an HSA.
What is the carryover provision?
The IRS recently approved a provision in which a portion of a participant’s unused funds may be carried over into the next plan year. The carryover option is only available if your employer elects to include it in their plan and it is not available on plans that include a grace period. If carryover is not included in your plan, unused funds will be forfeited and cannot be returned to you.
What is the grace period?
The grace period is an extra 2.5 months added to the end of your plan year to give you time to use any remaining funds in your account. Your employer must elect the grace period in order for you to participate. For example, if your plan year normally ends on December 31, 2020, but your employer opted to add the grace period, you can submit claims for expenses incurred January 1, 2020 through March 15, 2021.
Can I change my election amount if I use up all the funds in my account before the end of the year?
No. You can only change the amount you are contributing if 1) your company allows changes to the plan, and 2) you have a qualifying life event, such as birth or adoption of a child, marriage, divorce, or death of a spouse. Please contact your Human Resources Department to find out if changes are allowed, or contact our Customer Service Department at (800) 422-7038.
What if I leave the company or retire during the year and still have money in my account?
There are two ways this is handled so you will need to contact your employer or our Customer Service Department at (800) 422-7038 to find out which way applies to you.
If your account is fully funded out of the last paycheck you receive, then you will have access to your account funds. You will still be able to claim for services that happen throughout the plan year both before your employment terminated and after. However, your benefit debit card will be closed and all claims will need to be submitted manually, either online (via our consumer account portal) or on paper.
If the employer does not collect the remaining amount to fully fund your account out of your last paycheck, you will be restricted to claiming for services that happened prior to your terminating with the company. Any expenses incurred after you left the company will not be eligible for reimbursement, even if you still have money left in the account.
How will I know what items and services are covered under the FSA?
View our list of eligible expenses. If you have any questions about an item you do not see listed please call Customer Service at (800) 422-7038.
How do I submit a claim?
Complete and sign a Request for Reimbursement from FSA or HRA form or login to our consumer account portal and submit a claim along with your documentation.
How to Use Your Benefit Debit Card
If your plan includes a benefit debit card, you have an easy, automatic way to pay for qualified healthcare expenses not covered by your health insurance. Each time you incur a qualified healthcare expense at a health-related business (like a pharmacy or doctor’s office) that accepts MasterCard®, just use your card.
Here are some answers to a few frequently asked questions:
When can I start using my benefit debit card?
You may begin using your card within one business day after funds have been loaded to it.
I received two cards. What do I do with the second one?
The second card can be used by your spouse or child for their eligible medical expenses. Both will be printed with your name, but the second user should sign their own name on the back. Additional cards can be requested at any time for a $10 fee, which will be debited from your account.
I used my card to pay for services at my doctor, dentist, or hospital. Why am I still being asked for receipts?
The IRS requires that we verify all expenses that are not automatically accepted by our system. The system recognizes copay amounts given to us by your employer, as well as purchases made at retailers that may have implemented an IRS-approved inventory system.
Doctors, dentists, and other healthcare providers don’t have an inventory system in place. The date, amount paid, and the name on the credit card machine are the only pieces of information transmitted. In order to confirm eligibility of an expense, we need to see documentation that shows the following:
- Date of service or purchase date
- Brief description of the item or service
- Patient responsibility (the amount you paid) after the insurance has paid (if they were billed)
Please note: The card assumes the date of service is the day the card is swiped. If you are paying for a prior service, only use your card if the service date is within your current plan year. Prior year services need to be submitted manually as a claim for reimbursement.
What if I use my card to pay for ineligible expenses?
If you’ve made an ineligible purchase with your card, we will contact you. At that time, you have two options:
- Mail a refund check or money order for the ineligible purchase amount to: PacificSource Administrators, PO Box 70168, Springfield, Oregon 97475.
- Submit a receipt for an out-of-pocket expense (not paid with your card) to be used toward the ineligible expense.
My card is suspended. Why?
The IRS requires 100 percent of all charges be verified either through our auto-substantiation process or by submitting requested documentation. If there are any charges unverified or marked ineligible, it is mandatory (per the IRS) to suspend the card until the item can be verified.
My Receipt Request says transactions that are not properly documented may be subject to reporting on my W-2. Is this new?
Participants must supply acceptable documentation, provide a valid claim to offset, or send a refund for ineligible transactions within 150 days of the end of the plan year in which the transaction occurred or within 150 days after the card has been closed. Without substantiating documentation, the transaction is deemed undocumented and unrecoverable in our system.
If participants do not resolve the transactions within the designated time, the employer must then take additional steps to help correct the transaction and remain in compliance with IRS guidelines. They may request repayment of these amounts from their employees or report them as wages on Form W-2.
Dependent Care: How to Set up Recurring Expenses
Do you have a Dependent Care Expense Account? If so, are you tired of submitting claims for reimbursement for daycare costs? If you answered “yes” to these questions, we have a solution for you! Consider enrolling in our Dependent Care Recurring Expense Program. If your daycare rates are based on a flat weekly, biweekly, or monthly rate, this program can help you simplify the reimbursement process. Here’s how to get started:
- Complete the Dependent Care Recurring Expense form. This simple, one-page form can be found in the forms section of this site on our website.\. Type your information directly into the form, and print it out.
- Have your dependent’s care provider complete their portion of the form. They’ll need to give them their name, tax ID, rate, frequency, and date range the rate is in effect.
- Send the completed form to us in one of the following ways:
That’s it! Once it’s set up, you won’t need to submit additional documentation in the current plan year, unless your expenses change. As we receive payroll deductions to your FSA, we’ll automatically generate recurring reimbursements based on a flat weekly, biweekly, or monthly rate. The arrangement is valid for the duration requested or for the plan year, whichever is less.
Need to make a change to your recurring reimbursement before the plan year is over? Simply submit a new form, and we’ll make the adjustment.
EasyPay Makes Using Your FSA or HRA Convenient
Do you have a Flexible Spending Account (FSA) or Health Reimbursement Arrangement (HRA) and PacificSource health insurance coverage? If so, we have a great benefit for you!
PacificSource Administrators (PSA) and PacificSource Health Plans have teamed up to offer EasyPay, a free program that makes using your FSA or HRA even more convenient.
The EasyPay option allows you to be reimbursed automatically from your qualifying FSA or HRA for eligible medical, vision, prescription, and dental expenses that are processed by PacificSource Health Plans. Here’s how it works:
- You visit your healthcare provider or have a prescription filled, and pay your part of the expense.
- Your doctor or pharmacist sends the claim to PacificSource Health Plans.
- PacificSource processes and pays the claim according to your benefit contract.
- PacificSource generates a PSA EasyPay claim file and sends it to PSA.
- PSA reimburses you for your out-of-pocket expenses via check or electronic funds transfer (EFT).
The amount shown in the “Patient Responsibility” column on your EOB, or your co-pay amount on your pharmacy receipt, is the amount that we will review to determine eligibility and reimbursement.
How to Participate
To take advantage of the EasyPay option, just complete the EasyPay Enrollment Form, available from your benefits administrator or on our website. You can submit your completed form in one of the following ways:
- Fax: (541) 485-8759 or (800) 575-1109
- Mail: PO Box 70168, Springfield, Oregon 97475
Please allow at least ten business days for your enrollment form to be processed.
Important Notes about EasyPay
While EasyPay is a convenient option for using your FSA or HRA, there are a few things we want to make sure you’re aware of:
- To participate in EasyPay, you can only be enrolled in one PacificSource medical and/or dental plan, and it must be your only insurance plan.
- If your dependents are covered by your PacificSource policy, their claims will also be reported to us, and we will reimburse you for all eligible expenses.
- You can be enrolled in EasyPay or use the benefit debit card, but not both. If you are enrolled in EasyPay and sign up for the benefit debit card, your EasyPay option will be cancelled.
- If PacificSource pays a claim for which you’ve already been reimbursed, you will need to send PSA a check or money order to reimburse your account for the amount you were overpaid.
- If your employment is terminated, your enrollment in EasyPay will stop after we receive a termination notice from your employer, and you will need to start sending claims in manually.
Questions about EasyPay? You’re welcome to contact our Customer Service Department—a representative will be happy to assist you.