How to shop at Amazon with your FSA or HSA card – CNET

fsa-and-hsa-cards

Use this card (if you have one) to buy sunscreen, bandages and tons of other health-related products on Amazon.


Amazon

Do you have a Flexible Spending Account or Health Savings Account as part of your health insurance? Good news: You can use it to buy a wealth of health and wellness products at Amazon.

Surprised? I was, too. Our insurance plan includes an HSA credit card with a fixed spending amount per year. I’ve used it for things like co-pays at the doctor’s office and prescriptions at the pharmacy.

But I didn’t realize I could also use it to shop at Amazon for things like:

amazon-hsa-fsa-eligible-note

Screenshot by Rick Broida/CNET

You can also be on the lookout for any Amazon product that has “FSA or HSA eligible” listed below the price and above the buy buttons, as shown in the screenshot here.

How prices compare

Does Amazon charge any kind of premium for FSA/HSA-eligible products? Not that I could see. Indeed, when I looked at a handful of sample items, I found that in most cases, Amazon was cheaper than CVS or Walgreen’s — in some cases much cheaper.

Amazon vs. CVS vs. Walgreens

Product Amazon CVS Walgreen’s
Dr. Scholl’s Heavy Duty Support Pain Relief Orthotics $12.97 $19.99 $19.99
Coppertone Sport Sunscreen Lotion SPF 50 (7 oz.) $7.49 $12.49 N/A
Dentek Professional-Fit Dental Guard $14.39 $30.99 $24.99

How to use your FSA or HSA card to make Amazon purchases

To use your card, just add it to your Amazon Wallet alongside your other method(s) of payment. You may also want to check out Amazon’s HSA/FSA frequently asked questions.

Here’s one: Why can’t you buy over-the-counter (OTC) meds this way? Turns out you need a prescription to use an HSA/FSA card for those, even though that contradicts the very definition of OTC.

But if you need anything from air purifiers to wart removers, you can shop on Amazon and pay with your HSA/FSA card. Who knew?


CNET’s Cheapskate scours the web for great deals on PCs, phones, gadgets and much more. Note that CNET may get a share of revenue from the sale of the products featured on this page. Questions about the Cheapskate blog? Find the answers on our FAQ page. Find more great buys on the CNET Deals pageĀ and follow the Cheapskate on Facebook andĀ Twitter!

source: cnet.com