“Use It or Lose It”

How to improve your running on government’s dime!

Steve Hefferon, CMT (#MD00039)
The good news is…

Several years ago the federal government did something ingenious. They started letting employees put pre-tax dollars into what are called…

Medical Savings Accounts (MSAs) and/or depending where you work, Flexible Spending Accounts (FSAs) these accounts allow you to pay for some of your medical costs with pre-tax dollars. Are you kidding me… how good is that… pre-taxed money for medical expenses. Like everything else the Federal Government does however there is always an element of interpretation that needs to be done. What constitutes a medical expense is the big question. If you have a MSA or FSA account then you are familiar with the process/limitations. If you don’t have an account and are not familiar with the plans, then all you need to do is to go to your human recourses department and ask, do we have a… and then ask for what is called the guide to allowable expenses.

Once you have the guide you can now look through it and ask yourself what on this list can help me as a runner that is not covered by insurance. The list will include all possible expenses and gives you a great opportunity to plan for any products, services and or equipment you may need for the future. And if there are any more questions regarding coverage just ask a more specific question to your HR Dept.

The question may go something like this… How much do I have in MSA/FSA? (this will be important later) I’m a runner and I have some running related conditions developing and I believe that some Orthopedic Massage would greatly help me and my condition. Does the account allow me to use the funds for Orthopedic Massage? The only thing you will need is a receipt from a Certified Massage Therapist? I have never heard of anyone being told no for massage. You can replace massage with any number of products, services and or equipment; just ask…

The bad news is…

1. Most people do not have an account because they don’t understand the benefits.
2. That you have to estimate how much money you will need for the entire year during the enrollment period sometime in the prior year. So your estimates may be low or they may be high unless you plan well.
3. And I mean really bad news is that if you estimated too high you will lose the remaining balance for that year. Meaning if you don’t use it you will lose it, and the account will start from zero next year.

With that said, some day the government will get it right, till then we need to go with what were given. If one of the limiting factors for you as a runner trying to elevate your running to the next level is the cost of products, services and or equipment, this is a great way to off set some of those expenses. The enrollment period usually ends before December, so get going.

You’ve seen Steven Hefferon, CMT, massaging runners at Wednesday night track sessions. He can be reached at hefferos@comcast.net or 301-916-4873.