Open Enrollment Time
It’s that time of year again… Time for benefits open enrollment…
I was just looking through our options, and it appears that we’ll be sitting tight with our current options this year. The biggest change is that we’ll be paying 14.5% more for health insurance this year (and so will my employer). The good news is that our dental coverage will cost the same, and my group life insurance is going down slightly.
Also note that employee retirement contribution limits are staying the same this year, so there won’t be any big changes in that area.
The only thing that we actually have to do is to set up our flexible spending account (which has to be done every year). In 2007, we set aside $1,200 and have essentially maxed that out. In truth, we’re well beyond this amount, but I’ve been lazy about submitting receipts. I haven’t yet decided how much to set aside for 2008. Since we’re not expecting any overly-large expenditures in terms of health care (no more braces until at least 2009), I’ll probably opt for the same amount this year.
Published on October 31st, 2007 - 7 Comments
Filed under: Insurance
email this article
- add to tip'd - stumble it - digg it - bookmark it
About the author: Nickel is the founder and editor-in-chief of this site. He's a thirty-something family man who has been writing about personal finance since 2005, and guess what? He's on Twitter!
Related articles...
» Flexible Spending Account Spent Out for 2007» Open Enrollment and our Flexible Spending Account
» Flexible Spending Account Improvements
» CitiBank’s Click-to-Pay Service
» 401(k) Changes to Encourage Saving
» My Employer’s Wellness Program
» Weekly Roundup – 11/10/06
» A Small(ish) Citi Gotcha
Was this article useful? Please sign up to receive our content via e-mail:
Great deals...
Readers’ choice...
Recent articles...
- Did Congress Make the Homebuyer Tax Credit Retroactive?
- Congress Extends $8000 Homebuyer Tax Credit, Adds New $6500 Credit
- Lending Club Update - October 2009 Performance
- How Much to Budget for Car Maintenance?
- Series I Savings Bonds Now Paying 3.36%
- Use Weight Loss Strategies to Get Out of Debt
- Weekly Roundup - Disney Shanghai Edition
- How to Save Money on Vacations
- Most and Least Reliable Cars - 2009 Edition
- Get 100 Free Trades from OptionsHouse Brokerage
Recent comments...
- APRIL DAYS: I FOR ONE HOPE THAT THE FIRST TIME HOMEOWNERS TAX CREDIT IS EXTENDED BECAUSE...
- JB: I drive a 1999 car and save $60 a month for car repairs, oil...
- Greta: My significant other and I bought a house in February 2009. My boyfriend...
- Jay: Don't forget nCleaner 2nd for turning off widows firewall and windows defender...also use the...
- Bryan: @Doug - you said it... if you simply delayed the closing, it would have...
- Sympathetic Dish TSR: @ Bonnie: Is your HD tv a Flatscreen LCD style? If so then a...
- John DeFlumeri Jr: Thanks for explaining the tax credit. Too bad for those who purchase in...
- Hank: I always budget $100 a month for car repairs. I constantly find myself going...
Most talked about...
- Dave Ramsey is Bad at Math
- $8,000 Homebuyer Tax Credit
- Dish Network Customer Service SUCKS
- How to Claim the First-Time Homebuyer Tax Credit
- $15,000 Homebuyer Tax Credit
- Reduced Credit Limits? Share Your Experience
- Would the "Fair Tax" Gut the Economy?
- Tax Stimulus Rebate Payments to Start Early
- Pay Off Mortgage Early? Or Invest?
- The Best Online Savings Accounts (Updated!)
- Life's Too Short to Drink Cheap Beer
- $7500 First Time Homebuyer Tax Credit
Sounds very familiar. Just posted on this topic this morning. We considered dropping the employer plan and doing a private policy to keep the premium down. In the end, the dollars just didn’t add up enough to make sense, so we’ll be staying where we are.
Comment by Curtis — Oct 31st 2007 @ 11:19 amOne of the best things about Flexible Spending Accounts (besides the tax advantages) is that it’s basically an interest free loan; you can claim your full years amount at the beginning of the year I typically get my eye exams and a year’s supply of disposable contacts in January each year. I can get reimbursed about five days after I fax in my receipts to our company
On the other side of the “forfeit” coin…if you claim your FSA money early in the year and quit your job, your company cannot claim the balance “owed” from your final paycheck…it’s basically free money. So if you’re planning to quit in January, but need that Lasik, then claim as much as you need during Open Enrollement, get your surgery in January, claim and get your FSA reimbursement, and then quit!
Comment by SteveK — Oct 31st 2007 @ 7:21 pmMy wife is a teacher and there are options upon options with the state plans. It took me a good 2 hours to sort through all the possibilities. I don’t even want to think about changing things.
Comment by The Saving Freak — Nov 1st 2007 @ 7:00 amIsn’t it fun to watch your benefits get more expensive and cover fewer things each year?
~Oswegan
Comment by Oswegan — Nov 1st 2007 @ 7:25 pmOswegan: Not really…