General HSA usage question.

xeviq

I have an HSA that the company I work for contributes to.
Here's the deal: I never go to the Dr. So over the past years, I have amassed quite a lot of Doctor Dough™
Now, I know the money has to be used for medical expenses or I get penalty taxed. The question is... can I use it for my girlfriend's medical expenses or only just mine?

Deebaser

Just yours

bowen

I'd call your HSA provider.

JHunz

YMMV, but the claim form for my HSA contains the following text:

Definition of eligible dependent includes spouse and any person who satisfies the definition of dependent within the meaning of Section 152 of the Code. (Will be reported as a financial dependent on your personal tax return or legally required to pay for medical expenses).

If you take a look at your claim or enrollment form, I suspect you will find similar text. Your girlfriend almost certainly does not qualify.

RUNN1NGMAN

If this is the same type of flex account my wife has, you can use it for quite a bit more than doctor's visits. You can use it for all kinds of over-the-counter meds. Condoms (maybe?). I bet you could use it for a massage if you went to a physical therapist. Find out what exactly is eligible and get creative. It's your money after all.

NailbunnyPD

On the other hand, you can typically use your HSA to buy healthcare products, which could then be used by your girlfriend. For example, when shopping at Target, the items that apply will typically show up on the receipt with a designation of some sort (maybe designated as FSA, but should still be applicable.) Just reimburse yourself for those items. If you get audited, though, you'll have to find a creative excuse for Monostat. =P

FSA and HSA are very similar, and items that apply to FSA should also apply to HSA. Flexible Spending Account is typically use it or lose it, where Health Savings Account allows the money to roll over year after year while gaining interest.

mspencer

Many pharmacies have SIG-IS ("SEE jiss") compliant inventory information systems (from any number of software vendors -- it's a competitive market) that automatically report what healthcare-related items you're buying ONLY IF the sale is on an HSA card. There's an IRS 90% rule for pharmacies: if 90% of your pharmacy's gross receipts are directly healthcare-related, you don't need an inventory information system. If not, then you need one.

That's the extent of my professional advice on the subject. The following is just guessing and may be inaccurate: I wonder if it's possible that buying things like that which you have no actual need for might trigger an investigation or audit. It seems plausible, since the information does get reported if you use a pharmacy that sells enough non-healthcare items that they might not fall under the 90% rule.