Keeping Up With The Bulls

A personal finance blog focused on making more money, saving money and smart spending.

5 Little Known Health Insurance Benefits

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Sure you use your health insurance when you go to the doctor, but did you know some health insurance plans offer more? Health insurance benefits has now expanded to help you stay healthy before you actually get sick. This includes benefits like fitness reimbursements, acupuncture and more. Here are 5 little known benefits that your health insurance may offer.

Fitness Reimbursements

Certain health insurance plans offer a $300 fitness reimbursement per year. This is no longer limited to traditional gyms! The fitness reimbursement can include classes such as yoga and spin, fitness trackers, and core training equipment (including Peloton bikes & the subscription!). Check your plan to see what is covered before you spend money on a Peloton, FitBit, gym membership or other fitness related item. If you’re not sure what is covered, go to your fitness reimbursement plan provider. In your account, look for a fitness reimbursement account FAQ document. The fitness reimbursement account FAQ will clearly outline what is eligible and what is not eligible. Exercising regularly is a great way to stay healthier and avoid trips to the doctor as well.

Gym Discounts

In addition to fitness reimbursements, some health insurance companies and corporations have negotiated discounts directly with gyms and athletic clubs. These discounts are on top of the fitness reimbursement and help reduce the cost of going to the gym even further. If you aren’t sure if you are eligible for a discount at your local gym, ask them. Even if there is no discount available to you today, ask if they are open to discounts with local companies. There is always an opportunity to help your company negotiate the discount.

Acupuncture Coverage

Some health insurance plans have been expanded to include acupuncture. Acupuncture has been shown to improve your wellness. This includes reduced stress, reduced physical pain and improved allergy relief. My health insurance covers about 20 acupuncture treatments per year and I am charged only a co-pay of $50 / visit.

Dermatologist

Over the counter skin creams including anti-aging creams all claim great results at a high price point, but did you know that you could save money on skin care by going to a dermatologist? My dermatologist prescribed Retin-A which helps with skin aging and acne and with my insurance, the generic costs $8 and lasts about 3 months. Way cheaper than the $50+ per small tube of anti-aging cream at Sephora. In addition, we’ve found a skin care regimen that I stick to, saving money and eliminating the distracting ads on the latest skincare crazes. A dermatologist is considered a specialist, so standard co-pays apply.

Employee Assistance Program

Another benefit some health insurance plans offer is 24/7 access to unlimited phone consultations and eight free sessions per issue per year with EAP counselors. From there, some health insurance plan include in-network coverage where PPO members pay a $20 co-pay per visit.

BONUS: HSA / FSA Eligible Items

You know your doctors visits and prescriptions are eligible to be reimbursed by your HSA and FSA accounts, but did you know what else you can buy with these accounts? This is especially helpful if you have too much money to roll over in your FSA at the end of the year and you have to use it or lose it. Bandaids, Advil and sunscreen are examples of items that are not prescription but can be bought with FSA funds.

FSA store has a full list of FSA eligible items. They also note that medical face masks require a letter of medical necessity to be FSA eligible. Not all HSAs are the same, but here is a comprehensive list of HSA eligible items.

What little known health insurance benefits have you found?

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Automate Your Savings

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Automate Your Savings - piggy bank filled with change.

Think you can’t save more?  Think again. When you automate your savings you’ll remove the step of manually moving money from your checking account to your savings account. The fewer steps you have to take to save money, the higher probability you’ll save more money.

I’ve talked to many friends who really want to get better at saving but just haven’t been able to. I’ve created budgets for them and it works for a few weeks but then their spending habits return back to normal. They see how much money is in their checking account and spend it. The number one thing that has helped them save more money is to automate their savings. If you see money available in your checking account and spend it, start automating your savings today.

What Does It Mean to Automate Your Savings

Automating your savings means you remove any manual steps to save money. A manual step usually includes having your paycheck deposited in your checking account and then you initiate a transfer of some of that money to your savings account. To automate your savings, set up direct deposit to your savings account when you get paid. Then, when you get paid your savings automatically is in your savings account, no manual transfer required.

There’s no more thinking about how you need to move money from one account to another and creating risk that you may spend some of that money before you remember to move it. You can set how much money you want to save in your savings account and forget it. You’re still able to spend this money in a pinch if you need, but that extra step of having to use another account and know you’re pulling it from your savings account helps scale back the spending and increases your success in growing your savings. Periodically you can check in and see how much your account has grown!

See Also: How to Generate Passive Income

How to Automate Savings By Setting Up Direct Deposit To Your Second Checking or Savings Account

Most companies offer select multiple accounts for direct deposits when you get paid. Choose which account gets a fixed amount every paycheck and which account gets the remainder of your paycheck. If you don’t have the link on setting up direct deposit your company provided you when you joined, search your internal HR Portal / intranet or ask your manager / HR.

You’ll need:

  • Bank Account Number
  • Routing Number
  • Type of Account
  • Bank Name and Address (you can use any address of the bank)
  • Account Holder Name

Best Time to Start Automating Your Savings

The best time to set up your savings account as a second direct deposit account is when you get a raise. Even if you only direct $25 per bi-weekly paycheck to another account, you’ll save $650 / year. You won’t miss this money if you time it with a raise because the amount you’ll see in your primary account won’t go down.

Another way to start is to look at how much you want to save for the year. If you want to start at $1,000/ year, you only have to direct $38.50 per bi-weekly paycheck to your savings account. If it’s $5,000, set aside $192.30 per bi-weekly paycheck to go to your savings account and then have the rest of your paycheck go to your checking account. And at that point, what’s another $16/ month? If you increase it to $200 / paycheck you’ll save $5,200 that year.

You also have the opportunity to set your savings account as the account that gets “everything else” and your checking account gets a set amount of your paycheck. In this scenario, if you get an unexpected bonus or raise it’ll automatically go to your savings account.

This is really what they mean when they say “pay yourself first.” And, it’s a great way to begin building your emergency fund.

The same is with your 401k. Anytime you switch jobs or get a raise you should increase your contribution to your 401k, even if it’s just 1%. Over time, it adds up.

What are ways you’ve found to automate savings and increase your savings rate?

Automate Your Savings