Finance 101
Health care Spending Account

All Cooper Tire factory employees have the opportunity to save 30-40% off their health care expenses in the coming year. These savings are possible by taking part in the Texarkana Health Care Spending Account plan. The form necessary for participation will be made available to employees before the end of the year. Last year, the enrollment form was attached to your paycheck/ pay stub during the month of December.

This plan is a very powerful tool for each individual. The plan allows you to set aside funds from your check each pay period to pay for most of your incurred medical expenses for the year. You have the option of contributing in any amount between $260 and $5,000 per year. The amount you choose to contribute to the plan is divided by the number of weeks in the year and that amount is deducted from your paycheck each week. This plan is strictly optional. You will not be forced to participate. The 30-40% savings are accomplished because the money is taken from your pay before it is taxed. By using this untaxed money, each dollar that you spend on health care goes farther. This plan is ideal for individuals who spend large sums on drug co-payments or medical deductibles.

Some of the benefits include:

$ You can use this money for reimbursement of your co-payment, deductibles, and plan exclusions for your medical, dental, optical, and prescription expenses.
$ You can make a claim on the amount of money you will place in the account and not on the amount that you have placed in your account. Example You have filed the form to participate in the plan at a level of $520 a year ($10 per week) and have put $20 in the plan as of January 14, 2007. On January 14, 2007, you have an auto accident and incur $1,000 of medical expenses. You are allowed to make a claim on the plan up to $520 as soon as you have paid the expense. You do not have to have all $520 in the account to make reclaim the amount from your account. The outstanding amount will be covered as the money is taken from your check each week.
$ You are allowed to make a claim for over the counter medications. Antacids, allergy medicines, pain relievers, and cold medicines are eligible for reimbursement as long as a cash register receipt or credit card receipt is filed with the claim.
$ Your method of reimbursement can be customized to fit your lifestyle.

Some of the limitations include:

$ You cannot “rollover “ any unspent amount from one year to the next year. You must spend the entire amount or it will be given to charity. This is in accordance with federal law. You will not be allowed to designate the charity of your choice and you will not be given tax credit for the donation. Again, this is according to federal law.
$ You are not allowed to make a claim for such items as vitamins or dietary supplements unless these items are prescribed by a health care professional.
$ Insurance premiums are not eligible for reimbursement.

Please read the “Texarkana Hourly Healthcare Spending Account” for a more detailed explanation of the plan.

TEXARKANA HOURLY HEALTHCARE SPENDING ACCOUNT

The Texarkana Healthcare Spending Account allows you to use the contributions to this account that have been deducted from your pay before taxes are withheld to pay for certain out-of-pocket medical expenses.

You have the option of contributing between $260 and $5,000 per year to the Texarkana Healthcare Spending Account that shall be funded through a weekly payroll deduction using pre-tax dollars. These funds may be used to pay for Eligible Expenses that have been incurred during the current Plan year.

Eligible Expenses, as defined in section 213 of the Internal Revenue Service Code, include expenses incurred by the Employee or a covered Dependent during current Plan year for treatments or services provided for “medical care”.

“Medical care” means amounts paid by an individual–

$ for the diagnosis, cure, mitigation, treatment, or prevention of disease, or for the purpose of affecting any structure of the body,
$ for transportation primarily for and essential to medical care, or
$ for insurance (including amounts paid as premiums under part B of title XVIII of the Social Security Act, relating to supplementary insurance for the aged) covering medical care.

“Medical Care” also includes a “Prescribed drug”, defined as a drug or medicine requiring a doctor’s prescription for its use by an individual. In addition, “Medical Care” also includes a non-prescribed drug in one of the following categories:

$ Antacids;
$ Allergy medications;
$ Pain relievers; and
$ Cold medicines.

The term “Medical Care” does not include non-prescription dietary supplements, such as vitamins.

Reimbursement from the “Health Care Spending Account” for Eligible Expenses must be incurred (not billed or paid) during the current Plan year, and while the Employee and Dependents are covered by the Plan.

Filing a Claim

Required documentation shall be your completion of a claim form, and providing evidence of payment by you for an Eligible Expense incurred during the current Plan year by you or your Dependents who are covered by the Plan.

Such evidence shall include, but is not limited to, the following:
$ Non-Insured Expenses: Medical or dental receipt identifying the patient and/or an Explanation of Benefits (EOB).
$ Over the counter drugs: credit card, or cash register receipt identifying the non-prescription drug. In addition, the employee must submit a signed statement certifying the non-prescription medicine was used for a covered family member.

Eligible Expenses must be filed with the proper documentation not later than March 31st of the year following the Plan year.

In accordance with federal law, any remaining balance in an Employee’s “Health Care Spending Account” at the end of each calendar year, except however, for reimbursements made by March 31st of the year following the Plan year as described above, shall be forfeited.

The Texarkana “Health Care Spending Account” shall be administered by the third-party administrator of the Plan.

Neither Cooper Tire, United Steelworkers, nor USW Local 752L can provide you with financial or tax advice, so you may wish to consider consultation with your personal financial advisor or tax advisor regarding the financial benefits of establishing this type of account. By federal law, any remaining balance in your account at the end of each year must be forfeited. You must use this benefit or lose it.