As deductible and co-pay amounts continue to grow in employer-sponsored health care plans, employees are taking greater advantage of the so-called account-based plans that help them pay for deductibles and co-pays with dollars that are set aside in a tax preferred account. Health Reimbursement Arrangements (HRAs) and Flexible Spending Accounts (FSAs) are helping millions of Americans save money on their out-of-pocket health care expenses.
However, the IRS requires that dollars claimed from these types of plans be approved, or “substantiated” by a third party administrator (TPA) who insures that they meet the requirements of a qualified medical expanse. In most instances, the TPA will require the employee to submit a receipt so the claimed expense can be verified.
The increased use of debit cards associated with these types of accounts has eliminated the need for some of this paperwork, but has created its own set of substantiation challenges. While the cards are able to “auto substantiate” many of the transactions that occur at drug stores and physician offices, some purchases still need to be verified manually by the TPA and this requires the employee to submit a receipt for money that has already been disbursed from the plan.
That happens if the employee no longer has a receipt, or if the purchase does not qualify as a medical expense? In most cases the employer must find a way to collect the non-substantiated amount from the employee, or add the amount as taxable income onto the employee’s W2 at the end of the year. Both of these alternatives create additional paperwork for the employer, and a potentially negative experience for the employee.
Now there is a better way to deal with these unsubstantiated debit card claims. Acclaris, a platform and business service provider leader that enables its clients to transform the way they offer and administer consumer-driven health and reimbursement accounts, has introduced an industry leading claims offset feature that allows the consumer to use yet unclaimed dollars to offset the amounts that were previously claimed, but for which the consumer does not have a valid receipt.
With this new feature, which is available online and on mobile devices, Acclaris enables its client’s consumers to make their own decisions about how to seek reimbursement for eligible expenses. Additional paperwork and potential embarrassment is eliminated as consumers can simply choose to scan and upload images of previously unclaimed paper receipts / EOBs, or use the portal to designate currently unclaimed carrier claims to offset previously unsubstantiated transactions.
About Acclaris, Inc: Through our clients we serve more than 1.8 million active account holders. Acclaris enables our clients to transform the way they offer and administer consumer-driven health and reimbursement accounts, maximizing their revenue and profit opportunity. Our integrated end-to-end operations, consumer focus and true private label approach help our clients increase revenue and lower costs, while delivering market leading CDH products and services under their own brand.
To learn more visit the Acclaris website at http://www.acclaris.com.
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