A Health Spending Account (HSA) is a benefit offered with some group plans that provides reimbursement for a variety of health-related expenses that may or may not be covered by your standard group plan. This ensures you can manage necessary health care expenses and minimize out-of-pocket costs.

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

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.

Paper claims may take up to 15 business days to process. This does not include the time needed by Canada Post to deliver your claim to us or the time required to process your claim through your health or dental plan if needed.

Provided the HSA claim was received within your group's claim limitation period, it is still considered eligible and will be included in the next payment run. Cheques are mailed every Wednesday and direct deposit payments are transmitted every Monday, Wednesday and Friday.

To avoid delay, sign up for direct deposit and gain access to HSA Online Request. This service allows you to request reimbursement for outstanding balances previously submitted to your health or dental plan. If you have receipts or unpaid balances with another carrier, be sure to submit an Explanation of Benefits (EOB) from that carrier so we may add these outstanding expenses to your account.

Your Health Spending Account (HSA) is administered in accordance with Canada Revenue Agency guidelines which state that an HSA must be the last payer (after government, spousal and student plans, etc.).