What are the Benefits of an HRA?

Educational Guidance

• Complimentary review of benefit plan designs and strategies
• On-site or online enrollment meetings with dedicated education specialists
• Pre- and post-enrollment communications and educational materials
• Free CEU webinars from our partnering firm
• Carrier Claims Feeds – Automatic and paperless claims processing via CrossTech or Easy Enrollment
• • Secure information transfer between Flex and insurance carriers, third-party administrators and pharmacy benefits managers
  • Available to participants of our FSAs that are also enrolled in one of the following health, dental and vision plans:
    
    • Aetna
    • Anthem
    • Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Illinois, along with many other BCBS plans
    • Cigna
    • Delta Dental
    • Guardian
    • Humana
    • IHS Health Solutions
    • Kaiser Permanente
    • MetLife
    • Principal
    • UnitedHealthcare
    • UNUM
    • And more! 
• Various plan design, eligible expense and funding options
• Flexible reimbursement frequency options including, daily and weekly
• Integration with any aggregate or embedded insurance plan
• Full integration with our other Flex Plans, allowing stackable operation

Personalized Service

• Live one-on-one customer care with dedicated specialists 
• Web portal – Integrated real time plan access for all your Flex Plans
  
  • Plan Administrators
    
    • Review account balances and activity
    • Make administrative updates
    • View payment history and plan details
    • Access participant and funding reports
    • Update participant status
    • Download forms
    • And more!
  • Participants
    
    • Review account balances and activity
    • Submit claims online, upload receipts and view status
    • Access payment history and plan information
    • Add and update banking information
    • Select Email/Text communication alerts to help manage your account
    • Download Forms
    • And more!

• Health Reimbursement Arrangement (HRA) FAQs

  What is a Health Reimbursement Account?

  A Health Reimbursement Arrangement is a defined contribution benefit established by an employer for their employees. Each year an employer determines a specified amount, or a defined contribution benefit, of pre-tax dollars to assist employees with medical expenses. Typically associated with an HDHP, this consumer driven plan is entirely funded by the employer and provides tax-free reimbursements to employees for substantiated medical expenses. HRA accounts provide a high degree of flexibility for the employer, as there are many plan designs to choose from which determine how and when the reimbursements are issued through an HRA administrator.

  What HRA Plan Designs are Available to My Clients?

  Various plan design and eligible expense options, including:

  Integrated HRA

  • Integrates with any aggregate or embedded group health plan
  • Plan options include:
    
    • First-dollar access to the HRA
    • Deductible first, then access to the HRA
    • Sandwich or reversed sandwich deductible
  • Eligible medical expenses include co-payments, co-insurance, deductibles, physical therapy, chiropractic care, acupuncture, prescription drugs, bandages, pregnancy test kits, blood pressure monitors, etc.

   Retiree HRA

  • Primarily used to reimburse Medicare premiums
  • Can also include all 213(d) eligible medical expenses that include:
    
    • co-pays, co-insurance, deductibles and Medicare premiums
    • dental expenses, such as exams, cleanings, X-rays, braces, etc.
    • vision expenses, such as exams, eyeglasses, eye surgery, etc.
    • chiropractic care, acupuncture, prescription drugs, over-the-counter medicines, etc.
  • Limit the types of eligible services and place maximum annual spend amounts on specific categories of care
  • Full integration with our FSA, HSA and Commuter Plans
  • If an FSA is also offered to employees, our technology allows you to determine the payment priority between the HRA and the FSA
  • Flexible reporting options available for Employers, Participants, and Producers

  Qualified Small Employer HRA 

  • Available for employers NOT subject to the Employer Mandate and who DO NOT offer a group health plan
  • Primarily used to reimburse individual health insurance premiums
  • Can also include all 213(d) eligible medical expenses that include:
    
    • copays, co-insurance, deductibles, and individual health insurance premiums
    • dental expenses, such as exams, cleanings, X-rays, braces, etc.
    • vision expenses, such as exams, eyeglasses, eye surgery, etc.
    • chiropractic care, acupuncture, prescription drugs, over-the-counter medicines, etc.

  Dental/Vision HRA

  • Used to exclusively reimburse dental and vision care expenses
  • Eligible dental expenses include exams, cleanings, X-rays, braces, etc.
  • Eligible vision expenses include exams, contact lenses and supplies, eyeglasses, laser eye surgery, etc.

  How Does an HRA Work?

  The defined contribution amount is placed into an HRA Account by the employer at the beginning of the plan year. Reimbursements are distributed by the HRA administrator based on the selected plan design to employees as medical expense claims are filed and substantiated.  Some eligible medical expenses that are reimbursable to the employee include:

  • Deductible Expenses
  • Copays
  • Coinsurance Expenses
  • Dental Expenses
  • Vision Expenses

  These reimbursements are distributed to employees on a tax-free basis. As a result, the benefit does not increase the employee’s taxable income. Employers also save because all contributions to the HRA plan are 100% tax deductible, resulting in a mutually beneficial program.