This is an automated archive made by the Lemmit Bot.

The original was posted on /r/tifu by /u/yousufq9 on 2026-06-23 18:49:11+00:00.

I’ve had an FSA for three years. What I somehow missed was how broad “medical expense” actually is.

In my head, my FSA card was basically a pharmacy card. So every December I’d panic-buy Tylenol and NyQuil like I was preparing for the world’s saddest flu season.

Last year I had about $1500 left on December 28. I panicked and booked a dental cleaning I didn’t need and bought more medicine cabinet stuff I already had.

Then in January I found out sunscreen, HEPA air purifiers, heating pads, blood pressure monitors, contact lens solution, and a ton of Amazon stuff can be FSA eligible. I had allergies all year. I could’ve bought a Winix air purifier in March. Instead I paid $160 for a panic dental cleaning!

TL;DR: Don’t panic-spend your FSA on random pharmacy stuff. There are a lot more eligible things you can actually use.