It’s no secret the cost of health care keeps rising, even faster than the rate of inflation.
MERS Health Care Savings Program is an innovative way to help employees prepare for those rising health care costs, with a tax-free medical savings account for use after leaving employment.

How It Works

Individual employee accounts are invested in MERS investment funds and grow tax-free. After leaving employment, the vested account balance is available for tax-free reimbursement of IRS-approved medical expenses, for the employee, any eligible dependents, and even a beneficiary on a taxable basis. The program can be used alone, or to complement an existing health care plan.

Features & Benefits

The MERS Health Care Savings Program is a great benefit employers can offer employees, and a great way to help employees prepare for future health care costs:

Qualified Medical Expenses

They are those specified in the plan that would generally qualify for the medical and dental expenses deduction. These are explained in Publication 502, Medical and Dental Expenses. However, even though non-prescription medicines (other than insulin) do not qualify for the medical and dental expenses deduction, they do qualify as expenses for Health Care Savings Program purposes.

Note: After 2010, non-prescription medicines (other than insulin) do not qualify as an expense for Health Care Savings Program purposes.

Qualified medical expenses from your Health Care Savings Program include the following.

• Amounts paid for health insurance premiums
• Amounts paid for long-term care coverage
• Amounts that are not covered under another health plan

What is a reimbursable health care expense? View Publication 502

View HCSP asset allocation, investment menus, and more. Click here.

MERS Regional Team members can help you find affordable answers to your benefit budget. Contact a MERS representative in your area at 800.767.MERS (6377), or click here.