CHPA calls on President to support FSA/HSA coverage of OTCs without a prescription

WASHINGTON —  Following President Obama’s post-election press conference and his pledge to work with the new Congress, the Consumer Healthcare Products Association urged the president to support bipartisan and bicameral legislation to repeal a requirement of the Affordable Care Act of 2010 that mandates consumers obtain a prescription in order to utilize their flexible-spending arrangements and health-savings accounts to purchase over-the-counter medicines.

 

In the current Congress, the Restoring Access to Medication Act (H.R. 2835, S. 1647) would repeal this provision.

 

“Today, Americans want to take even greater personal control over their own health for many reasons including cost and convenience," stated Scott Melville, CHPA president and CEO. "That’s why it is so important for the president to demonstrate support for an improvement to our nation’s healthcare law that would empower the over 45 million Americans who use FSAs and HSAs — the fastest-growing health insurance model — to help pay for healthcare expenses that are not covered by insurance," he said. "Requiring these individuals to make an unnecessary trip to the doctor to obtain a prescription for a non-prescription medicine is in direct conflict with the president’s goal to make our nation’s healthcare system more efficient, and we ask him to turn his attention to this simple and necessary fix that would save time and money for both consumers and the healthcare system at large.”