The Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2021 was approved and contains provisions that allow changes to the TexFlex program.

The following changes are effective immediately:

All unused funds from Plan Year 2020 accounts will carry over to your Plan Year 2021. There is no limit to the amount that can be carried over. You don’t need to take any action to make this happen. Wageworks is working on ensuring your funds are carried over and will notify you when the carryover is complete. (Previously, you could carry over up to $500 each plan year.)

If you leave employment or stop participation in the program before the end of Plan Year 2021, you can continue to incur claims for reimbursement until August 31, 2021. (Previously, you could only submit claims for dates of services and expenses that occurred on or before your last day of employment or before you stopped participation.)

For the 2021 plan year, you can increase or decrease your contribution amount and end your enrollment in TexFlex without a qualifying life event (QLE). You cannot reduce your contribution to an amount less than what you’ve already contributed and/or have been reimbursed. Example: If you’ve contributed $300, you cannot reduce your annual contribution below $300. If you have been reimbursed $500, you cannot reduce your annual contribution below $500. (Previously, you could not make changes to your TexFlex account without a QLE.) These changes will take effect the first of the following month. Example, you make the change in February, the change will take effect March 2021.

If you enrolled in the dependent care FSA prior to January 31, 2020 and had a qualifying dependent who turned (or will turn) 13 during the 2020 or 2021 plan years, you can submit claims for that child until they turn 14. (Previously, you could only submit claims for children age 13 or under.)

Over-the-counter (OTC) drugs and medicines no longer require a doctor’s prescription in order to be paid for or reimbursed through an FSA. This means that participants in a health FSA can now use the benefit to pay for OTC items like cold medicine, allergy medicine and pain relievers, without having to make an extra trip to the doctor to receive a prescription. This new guideline is effective immediately and is retroactive to January 1, 2020.