Yes, you can buy diapers with a flexible spending account (FSA)

[Alex Bridges]

I recall seeing this question asked here before, and people didn’t agree on the answer. Here is the answer:

Yes, you can buy diapers with your flexible spending account (FSA).

I know because I did. Uploaded a receipt from LLMedico along with my claim, and it was approved without any questions within 48 hours. No prescription needed - just a receipt that said “adult diapers”.

Not sure how’d you fare if you uploaded a receipt from Tykables or similar, but incontinence supplies are universally covered by FSA.

The federal government, not your employer, decides what it is covered.

HIPPA, the healthcare privacy law, ensures your employer never learns what you spend your FSA on.

So if you have some money leftover from last year’s FSA or don’t think you’ll spend what you set aside this year on medical care, here’s a fun way to spend it.

[willnotwill]

It's HIPAA, by the way.   It may or may not protect your FSA benefit depending on the number of employees in the plan (but most are covered entities).

The validity of diapers for HSA and FSA follows the general rules for medical tax deduction.    As long as the expense is for a medical condition (and as far as diapers are concerned, any use post-infancy is considered such), then it can be deducted from your taxes (subject to other thresholds and limits) and be purchased via tax-protected things like FSAs and HSAs.

The IRS hasn't conceived as to why a person would buy and use adult diapers if they didn't have a medical need, so they don't question it.

[Cute_Kitten]

This is good info to know, thanks for sharing.  

[dyperbole]

What is interesting is nowadays my doctors are writing prescriptions for over the counter items.  I recently got a couple from my gastro specialist for Metamucil and Calmoseptine.  I thought it was weird, but apparently they do that so one can claim the cost of these items on their FSAs if documentation is requested by their FSA administrators.

[willnotwill]

The IRS requires OTC meds to have a prescription if you are going to use them for FSA purposes (other than insulin).    That doesn't extend to diapers, but a lot of providers will write it anyhow because some things like medicaid want it as well.

 

[technomonkey]

8 hours ago, dyperbole said:

What is interesting is nowadays my doctors are writing prescriptions for over the counter items.  I recently got a couple from my gastro specialist for Metamucil and Calmoseptine.  I thought it was weird, but apparently they do that so one can claim the cost of these items on their FSAs if documentation is requested by their FSA administrators.

My doctor Has been writing scripts for diapers for the last 10 years. It took two other doctors to get the insurance to cover it. After a letter from my neurosurgeon and urologist and family doc. At first the insurance wanted to give me the cheapest thinnest diapers out there. So now i have the doc put the brand size and cases per month on script. and no abdl printed diapers. I think if i come in the office for a check up with a printed diaper on they would question it. but i am happy with my molicare or Northshore.

[willnotwill]

Insurance is a distinct issue from the IRS/FSA/HSA issues.    An Rx is required for most private insurances and medicaid to pay.    As far as the tax issues (deductions/FSA/HSA), the IRS just assumes you wouldn't buy diapers without a medical need.

[Alex Bridges]

1 hour ago, willnotwill said:

Insurance is a distinct issue from the IRS/FSA/HSA issues.    An Rx is required for most private insurances and medicaid to pay.    As far as the tax issues (deductions/FSA/HSA), the IRS just assumes you wouldn't buy diapers without a medical need.

And likely knows that there are number of products with non-medical uses that those things cover and made the judgment that (1) it would be unethical and a violation of regulation-making procedures to burden those who use them for medical reasons with a requirement for proof and (2) not worth the money they might collect if they did.

Federal rule making, by law, requires that any rule change produces a benefit that outweighs the costs. Burdening people with a medical need to catch a few people using medical equipment for off brand uses doesn’t pass the benefit-to-cost test (more people harmed than helped by rule change), and even just at a monetary level, the IRS would probably spend more trying to enforce the rule than they would collect in taxes from stopping people claiming expenses for off brand use.

They're going to spend how much money in the form of man hours to keep someone from buying a case of diapers with pre-tax income?

[willnotwill]

There's no "rule making" involved here, Alex.   How items qualify are just described by IRS policy.   But I agree with the rest of your statement.   The IRS just doesn't see that people would abuse adult diapers (or that it is too infrequent to worry about).    

[Alex Bridges]

2 hours ago, willnotwill said:

There's no "rule making" involved here, Alex.   How items qualify are just described by IRS policy.   But I agree with the rest of your statement.   The IRS just doesn't see that people would abuse adult diapers (or that it is too infrequent to worry about).    

I meant prospectively, as in, if they were to change what qualifies or who has to show evidence, that would constitute a rule change.

[2sail2]

I''ve tried to read about this, but it doesn't seem to have the right information that I want to know.  So...

Where do you upload them to?  

 I assume you have to report on taxes?

Now, don't you have to set aside part of pay check for it in a separate account?

Wonder if it's worthwhile for the $250 that I spend a year.  

[puffy_bottom]

I am so pissed I got busy and gave away the ability to do this when I left an employer who had a card-based FSA account for me and didn't use the balance for buying diapers. My current one is receipt-based and it's such a pain in the ass I dropped it because I wasn't using it at all.

[diaperguy85]

i bought diapers with FSA last december. everything went through fine, i got my diapers and some PUL pants, and i'm happy. i hope to do it again this year if i have enough.

LL Medico has an easy system that has everything color coded for FSA eligibility. i ordered from them and northshore with no issues. 

[willnotwill]

On 3/17/2020 at 3:35 PM, 2sail2 said:

I''ve tried to read about this, but it doesn't seem to have the right information that I want to know.  So...

Where do you upload them to?  

 I assume you have to report on taxes?

Now, don't you have to set aside part of pay check for it in a separate account?

Wonder if it's worthwhile for the $250 that I spend a year.  

It's kind of hard to follow your questions.   An Flexible Savings Account, FSA, is a benefit an employer offers.    If they do, it allows you money to spend on certain medical items that doesn't end up being taxable to you.   If your employer doesn't offer it, you don't get to use it.    The FSA benefits are use or lose every year.   If you don't use them, they go away.    The Flexible part is that you get to chose what you spend it on from the things that are allowable.

A related plan is an Health Savings Account, HSA.   An HSA is an account that you are eligible if all your medical insurance is in the form of a High Deductible Health Plan, which is becoming more common as it is much cheaper.    The HSA allows you to bank pretax money in an account (which also grows tax free though the investment vehicles typically used don't generate much income).    Again, you can use this for certain medical items.   The difference with the HSA is that the money remains in the account if you don't spend it.   You're free to spend it at some time in the future for medical items and when you reach retirement age, you can draw on it for any purpose.

In both cases, the IRS rules on what you can spend from these tax-free accounts points to the the law on the general tax deduction of medical expenses.   The rules there say diapers for medical conditions are allowable (which pretty much covers any post-infancy need for them).    As stated, the IRS doesn't think that non-medical use of diapers is a big enough worry to require special handling (unlike OTC meds).

[diaperguy85]

it depends on the plan that your employer provides. there are two main options (that i'm aware of), both you pay into out of your paycheck up to a certain amount per year, around the 5 or 6K range, i think.

PLAN 1- you lose everything over $500 in your FSA account at the beginning of the calender year, January 1st, and the $500 rolls over to the next year (i have this one)

PLAN 2- you lose everything in the account, no keeping $500, but you have a grace period of a several weeks into the calender year to spend everything.

either plan, you get a card that acts like a credit card of sorts. some research is needed to determine where you can use it, besides doctor's offices, hospitals and various medical supply websites and stores. i don't think it can be used for co-pays, but don't quote me on that! or anything else regarding payments lol i'm no expert on these matters. but i do know that you just can't waltz into a CVS or a walgreen's and pay at the register with the FSA card. you might with prescriptions, but again, im no expert.

[willnotwill]

You can use the FSA for copays.  The thing you are barred from using it for is to pay for your insurance premiums.

[DL-Boy]

You can also "waltz into CVS" and buy ANYTHING that is FSA compliant, with your FSA debit card.  Anything that is in the system as "FSA compliant" regardless of whether it's by Rx or not is still available through the FSA card.  What dictates what is acceptable for FSA is what was laid out in the FSA rules by the IRS, who governs FSA compliance.  For instance, diabetic testing supplies are covered on FSA and you can buy them over the counter with the FSA card.

[messyman]

On 3/12/2020 at 9:59 PM, Alex Bridges said:

And likely knows that there are number of products with non-medical uses that those things

Penis pumps are apparently covered. So why not recreational diapers?

[willnotwill]

Apparently, sexual devices (things both designed to facilitate and prevent procreation) are deductible.

Sex toys for solo use are not.