Flexible Spending Accounts
NDSU uses an outside vendor, Discovery Benefits, to administer the flexible spending plan. Employees may elect to participate on a yearly basis, with the option to enroll each year in the month of November. Flexible Spending Accounts provide a pre-tax benefit but do contain a use-it-or-lose-it clause. NDSU implemented a grace period that allows claims to be incurred through March 15 of the following year for the prior year’s flex dollars.
Limits
Medical Spending - $2,500 annually
Dependent Care - $5,000 annually per household set by IRS
Over-the-Counter Medications
Effective January 1, 2011, over-the-counter medications are no longer eligible under the medical spending account unless there is a doctor’s prescription on file with Discovery Benefits. This change became effective with the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (PPACA) and was signed into law in March 2010.
