All the Health and Fitness Products You Never Knew You Could Buy With Your HSA (Health Savings Account) Funds.
Theoretically, you could use funds from your FSA or HSA account to purchase a new fitness tracker or smartwatch (even the latest Fitbit Air )—but is the process really as easy as the ads promise? Your HSA/FSA funds won’t cover the entire purchase right away; instead, you’ll save an average of 30 % on eligible medical purchases.
There are a few more nuances, though they’re not as complex as they might seem. In most cases, if a device is needed to treat or monitor a specific condition, rather than simply for “general wellness,” it can be purchased with pre-tax healthcare funds.
With that in mind, the main pitfall here (as I explained previously ) is proving that the device is truly necessary, which requires obtaining a Letter of Medical Necessity (LMN). Your LMN is essentially a doctor’s note required to classify certain purchases as qualified medical expenses under IRS rules, proving that the device will be used to treat a legitimate medical condition, such as obesity or heart disease. Let’s look at what you can expect if you want to qualify for a fitness tracker as medically necessary.
How to use funds from your HSA/FSA account to buy a fitness tracker
Thanks to third-party services like Truemed , you might not even need a doctor’s appointment to get an LMN. On websites like Coros , Amazfit , and others, you’ll see the “Pay with Truemed” option when placing an order. Afterward, you’ll be asked a few questions about your health and connected with a doctor to determine your eligibility. If you qualify, you’ll receive an LMN, which allows you to use funds from your HSA or FSA to complete the purchase—all without having to see your doctor.
Truemed is one of the most popular payment platforms in this space, and the company claims on its website that “90% of medical device applications are approved within 7 hours.” I spoke with Truemed co-founder and CEO Justin Mares to learn how it works behind the scenes. After you complete a short survey about your health, an independent, licensed healthcare provider will review your answers before deciding whether the purchase is medically necessary. If not, Truemed won’t submit the request at all. Because Truemed verifies your case before it can be rejected, these approval rates remain very high. And in reality, most Americans have at least one health metric—like weight or cholesterol—that they can self-report to prove that, say, a Fitbit Air is a necessary tool for preventative health and wellness.
For purchases that do reach a healthcare provider, approval is surprisingly straightforward. It all comes down to the concept of “standard of care” in general. “If you go to the doctor and tell them you have a family history of high blood pressure,” says Mares, “they probably won’t request blood tests before talking to you about it. They’ll just take your word for it and help you reduce your risk.” According to Mares, HSA/FSA eligibility approval is often based on the same standard. You don’t have to provide a ton of medical documentation; you fill out a simple questionnaire about your medical history, and a licensed physician, using that information and their own judgment, decides whether a particular product is right for you.
Before you get too excited, it’s important to note that wearable device eligibility through an FSA/HSA is far from guaranteed. An LMN covers only you personally for a specific product from a specific vendor, and it’s typically tied to a specific condition, such as cardiovascular risk, prediabetes, sleep problems, chronic pain, and so on. Some employer FSA administrators vet wearable device purchases more thoroughly than others, and even a fully compliant LMN doesn’t guarantee approval. Some companies (like Coros) are more forthcoming in explaining the need for a medical consultation when placing an order, while other brands advertise “HSA/FSA eligible” without explaining that passing an LMN check makes that claim true. Luckily, I’ve saved you some time and rounded up some of the top wearable devices—and other unexpected items—that you can certify as eligible for use through an FSA/HSA.
Wearable devices focused on recovery
Screenless recovery tracking devices like the Whoop , Amazfit Helio Strap , and Oura Ring are typically eligible for HSA/FSA use based on sleep quality assessments, heart rate variability-based stress monitoring, or chronic disease recovery tracking. However, they tend to attract more attention from plan administrators because they are primarily marketed as wellness products, so the accuracy of your survey responses is more important than with something more medical, like a blood pressure monitor.
Smartwatches and heart rate monitors
If cardiovascular monitoring, exercise load tracking, or heart rate accuracy are relevant to established health concerns, these watches may meet criteria similar to those of regular fitness trackers. For example, Coros offers HSA/FSA eligibility for all of its watches and heart rate monitors through a partnership with Truemed. Similarly, Amazfit allows you to filter products by HSA/FSA eligibility for its smartwatches . Unfortunately, Garmin watches are not HSA/FSA eligible. However, the following Garmin products are eligible for purchase with HSA/FSA funds:
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Smart tonometer Index BPM
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Index S2 Smart Scale
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Heart rate monitor HRM-Fit for women
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heart rate monitor HRM-Pro Plus
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HRM-Dual — real-time heart rate monitor
Here you can filter products by HSA/FSA eligibility and view all eligible Garmin products .
Home fitness equipment
Imagine adjustable dumbbells, rowing machines, and exercise bikes with internet connectivity. It’s the same logic doctors use when recommending regular exercise to patients with prediabetes or high cholesterol; if your doctor is willing to confirm that structured exercise is part of your treatment plan, then equipment that allows for it may be appropriate. For example, here are some Nike Strength products that are eligible for HSA/FSA payment:
What all these cases have in common is that it’s not the product itself that qualifies for assistance, but your medical history. A Whoop bracelet might be easily approved for someone with a heart condition, but it’ll be more challenging for someone with no relevant medical history. If you’re wondering if something on your wish list might qualify, it’s worth filling out a survey to see how creatively you can spend your pre-tax healthcare dollars.