A Health Spending Account (HSA) is a tax-free allocation of credits that an employer may offer to employees to provide reimbursement on a wide range of out-of-pocket health expenses. In general, expenses are considered eligible if they qualify as a medical expense tax credit under the Income Tax Act of Canada and have not been 100 per cent reimbursed by another benefit plan. Deductible amounts and co-insurance also qualify.

An HSA is administered in accordance with Canada Revenue Agency guidelines, and is always last payer (after government, employer, individual, student, and spousal plans).

Health Spending Account credits are deposited into your account as directed by your employer. Visit Coverage in mybluecross® to view your HSA coverage information, including credits accrued and credits used.

If you have an automatic claim payment plan, you do not need to request reimbursement. Manitoba Blue Cross will automatically pay balances remaining from previously submitted claims with the payment of a health or dental claim or when you reach the minimum payment threshold. If you have unpaid balances with another carrier, add an Explanation of Benefits (EOB) from that carrier to your claim on mybluecross®. Or, if you have unclaimed expenses, be sure to submit your claim on mybluecross.

If you have an on request claim payment plan, you will need to request reimbursement for unpaid balances:

The easiest time to do this is during initial claim submission to your health or dental plan. When completing your online or paper claim, check Yes where it says "Pay remainder from Health Spending Account."

To request reimbursement after a claim has been submitted to your health or dental plan, use the Request HSA payment feature within mybluecross®. This web-based application allows you to quickly request reimbursement for outstanding balances previously submitted to your health or dental plan.

If you have unpaid balances with another carrier, please submit an Explanation of Benefits (EOB) from that carrier on mybluecross® so we may add these outstanding expenses to your account. Or, if you have unclaimed expenses, be sure to submit your claim on mybluecross.

In accordance with Canada Revenue Agency guidelines, proper receipts must support all amounts claimed as qualifying medical expenses. A receipt should indicate the purpose of the payment, the date of the payment, the patient for whom the payment was made and, if applicable, the medical practitioner, dentist, pharmacist, nurse, or optometrist who prescribed the purchase or gave the service. A cancelled cheque will not be accepted as a substitute for a receipt.

To maximize credit use, it is recommended that members submit Health Spending Account (HSA) claims within the same benefit year, ideally at time of expense. Each HSA plan has a grace period following the benefit year which is referred to as the claim limitation period. This grace period varies by group. Visit Coverage in mybluecross® to view your Health Spending Account (HSA) plan information including claim limitation period and benefit year.

* Based on coordination of benefits' guidelines, a member's HSA plan will always pay first, followed by the plan where they are covered as a spouse. To maximize credit use, it is important that members request reimbursement within the same benefit year, prior to allocation of their next year's credits.