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IRS Announces 2024 Limits for Health Savings Accounts, High-Deductible Health Plans and Excepted Benefit HRAs

Recently, the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) announced (See Revenue Procedure 2023-23) cost-of-living adjustments to the applicable dollar limits for health savings accounts (HSAs), high-deductible health plans (HDHPs) and excepted benefit health reimbursement arrangements (HRAs) for 2024. All of the dollar limits currently in effect for 2023 will change for 2024, with the exception of one limit. The HSA catch-up contribution for individuals ages 55 and older will not change as it is not subject to cost-of-living adjustments.

See the adjustments here.




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IRS Announces 2023 Limits for Health Savings Accounts, High-Deductible Health Plans and Excepted Benefit HRAs

Recently, the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) announced (See Revenue Procedure 2022-24) cost-of-living adjustments to the applicable dollar limits for health savings accounts (HSAs), high-deductible health plans (HDHPs) and excepted benefit health reimbursement arrangements (HRAs) for 2023. All of the dollar limits currently in effect for 2022 will change for 2023, with the exception of one limit. The HSA catch-up contribution for individuals ages 55 and older will not change as it is not subject to cost-of-living adjustments.

The table below compares the applicable dollar limits for HSAs, HDHPs and excepted benefit HRAs for 2022 and 2023.

NEXT STEPS

Plan sponsors should update payroll and plan administration systems for the 2023 cost-of-living adjustments and incorporate the new limits in relevant participant communications, such as open enrollment and communication materials, plan documents and summary plan descriptions.

For further information about applying the new HSA, HDHP and excepted benefit HRA plan limits for 2023, please contact your regular McDermott lawyer or one of the authors below.




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IRS Announces 2022 Limits for Health Savings Accounts, High-Deductible Health Plans and Excepted Benefit HRAs

The Internal Revenue Service recently announced cost-of-living adjustments to the applicable dollar limits for health savings accounts, high-deductible health plans and excepted benefit health reimbursement arrangements for 2022. Some of the dollar limits currently in effect for 2021 will change for 2022.

Access the article.




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Genetic Testing Kits and FSAs

The IRS issued a private letter ruling (PLR) this week indicating that an FSA (and presumably an HSA and HRA) may reimburse a portion of the purchase of genetic testing and reports regarding ancestry and health. The IRS noted that the health services portion of such a cost is a reimbursable medical expense under Code Section 213(d) because the tests fall under “diagnosis of a disease.” With respect to the genetic services incurred by the individual seeking the PLR, the IRS noted that the reports contained genotyping (a qualified medical expense), as well as general information and ancestry information (not a qualified medical expense). It is incumbent upon the taxpayer to allocate the cost for the reimbursement to the portion which was attributable to a qualified medical expense. IRS private letter rulings are only applicable for the taxpayer that requests it; however, this is helpful insight to IRS approach to genetic testing kits as Code Section 213 medical expenses.




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Fridays With Benefits Webinar | Make Way For The HRA!

Join us Friday, December 7 for our monthly Fridays With Benefits webinar. New proposed rules make the HRA an interesting option for employers beginning in 2020. Join McDermott lawyers for an interactive discussion regarding the “Integrated HRA” the “Excepted Benefit HRA” and the medical plan design opportunities they present.

Join our lively 45-minute discussion while we tackle the following items:

  • Can we really get out of the medical coverage game?
  • How does the Integrated HRA work?
  • What are the next steps?

Friday, December 7, 2018
10:00 – 10:45 am PDT
11:00 – 11:45 am MDT
12:00 – 12:45 pm CDT
1:00 – 1:45 pm EDT

Register now.




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Paving the Way for More HRAs

President Trump signed an executive order last year directing the Secretaries of Labor, Treasury and Health and Human Services to consider proposing regulations to “increase the usability of HRAs.” This month, the collective departments issued proposed regulations containing changes to the prohibition on pairing HRAs with individual health policies, as well as other changes to the current HRA rules.

Proposed effective date January 1, 2020; comments due December 28, 2018.

Access the full article.




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The Basics of Health Savings Accounts and Health Flexible Spending Accounts

In a recent webinar, Jake Mattinson and Sarah Raaii discussed the basics of health savings accounts (HSAs) and health flexible spending accounts. They provided an overview of the various regulations surrounding HSA, such as eligibility requirements, high deductible health plans, and contributions and distributions, and cafeteria plans. Additionally, they analyzed the differences between HSAs and Health FSAs and HRAs.

View the full presentation.




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Modification of “Use It or Lose It” Rule for Health Flexible Spending Arrangements

The Internal Revenue Service recently issued new guidance modifying the “use it or lose it” rule applicable to health flexible spending arrangements (FSAs) to allow carryover of certain unused health FSA amounts into the next plan year.

On October 31, 2013, the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) issued Notice 2013-71, which modifies the existing requirement that unused amounts in a health flexible spending arrangement (FSA) at the end of a plan year (or applicable grace period) must be forfeited. This new guidance permits an employer to amend its cafeteria plan, effective as early as the 2013 plan year, to allow up to $500 of unused amounts as of the end of the plan year to be carried forward for use in the following plan year. The tradeoff is that a health FSA cannot have both a grace period and a carryover feature; it is one or the other.

Carryover of Certain Unused Amounts Permitted

The “use it or lose it” rule applicable to health FSAs requires unused amounts remaining in a health FSA at the end of a plan year (or applicable grace period) to be forfeited. The new guidance now permits an employer to amend its plan to allow for up to $500 of unused amounts remaining in a health FSA at the end of a plan year to be carried forward to reimburse eligible expenses incurred in the next following plan year. While the employer can elect to allow less than $500 to be carried over into the next following plan year, the same carryover limit must apply to all plan participants. This $500 permitted carryover feature does not affect the $2,500 annual health FSA limit imposed by the Affordable Care Act. Thus, a participant with $500 remaining unused in his or her health FSA at the end of a plan year may be permitted to carryover the $500 into the next plan year, in addition to a maximum contribution of $2,500, for a potential total of $3,000 available reimbursement that next following plan year.

Under prior IRS guidance, health FSAs are permitted to include a two-month and 15-day grace period after the end of the plan year, during which a health FSA participant can incur eligible expenses and use the amounts contributed for the previous year to pay those expenses. The new guidance specifies that a plan that is amended to provide for the carryover of unused health FSA amounts into the following plan year cannot also have a grace period in place for that following plan year. Thus, an employer amending its plan to allow for carryover of unused health FSA amounts may also need to amend the plan to remove any existing grace period feature.

Deadline for Plan Amendments Allowing Carryover

Under the new guidance, an employer electing to allow for carryover of unused health FSA amounts must amend its plan to permit the carryover. This amendment must be adopted on or before the last day of the plan year from which amounts can be carried [...]

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