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I never realized that some of the over-the-counter, everyday medications we have in our homes come with an expiration date. That was quite the shock to me!! I thought they were good forever, but it turns out I was seriously wrong. For those that have an FSA or Flexible Savings Account for their healthcare should keep this in mind when they are faced with their FSA dollars expiring December 31. We here at HPFY can possibly give some clarity into which medications or over-the-counter first-aid products are FSA eligible for your dollars before they expire and disappear.
Once we buy an over-the-counter (OTC) medication or ointment it’s often easy to forget that they don’t last forever. Whether it’s cold medicine or calamine lotion or even a cream or salve for itchy skin or a rash, they do have an expiration date. On a safety note, even though they say “over the counter” this does not mean that they should be left on the kitchen counter or within easy reach of small children. Children overdose every year on OTC medications, so keeping them in the medicine chest/cabinet is a good idea. Each of these over-the-counter medications has an expiration date on it and keeping medications past this date can mean the medicine in them can become less effective when they are truly needed the most. Expiration dates are scientifically based upon when the manufacturer can fully guarantee the full effectiveness, purity, and safety of an over-the-counter medication in a closed container. Some tips for storing your OTC medication include:
With all FSA plans, you lose your pretax dollars at the end of the year if they are not used. This is a great time to check the first-aid kit or medicine cabinet to see what FSA eligible over-the-counter medicines you may need to replace. Simply check the expiration date on these meds and be sure to use your FSA dollars to replace these every day OTC medications. Some eligible FSA medications can include:
It is critically important that any expired medication gets disposed of properly and not just willy-nilly where it could be accidentally ingested by small children or pets. The FDA offers guidelines for how to properly dispose of unused medication that could be expired. Visit the FDA website at:
Often we take the over-the-counter medicines that we keep in our medicine cabinets or first-aid kits for granted. We just assume that they are good and effective when we need them and that time doesn’t have any negative effect on them. Turns out over time they can lose their efficacy and not provide the proper relief we need from simple, everyday ailments. Be sure to check your medicine cabinet annually and if anything needs replacing, use your FSA dollars wisely to replenish your stock pile before forfeiting any annual FSA contributions.
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