Recent Bank of America research has found that employers feel more responsible than ever for their employees’ financial wellness (95% felt responsible in 2021, up from 81% in 2015), illustrating the growing need for a holistic range of benefits to help employees navigate the complexity of planning for their financial futures.
To respond to employer and employee attitudes about the importance of expanded benefit offerings, Bank of America has developed a new addition to its financial life benefits program: lifestyle spending accounts. Each LSA is an employer-funded account for employees to use to pay for eligible physical, emotional and financial wellness expenses.
Examples of products and services include fitness memberships, financial seminars, counseling, pet care, cooking lessons, leadership retreats and more. Employers decide what expenses are eligible under the program.
The new offering is an expansion of Bank of America’s integrated suite of health benefit offerings, which also include health savings accounts, flexible spending accounts, reimbursement accounts and commuter benefit accounts.
Now available to institutional clients, LSAs’ key features include:
- Flexible product offering. These customizable accounts allow plan sponsor clients to create a plan promoting healthy habits and overall employee wellbeing. This post-tax benefit account is 100% funded by the employer to cover the cost of common and beneficial lifestyle expenses. Participants receive a single debit card to use for eligible expenses.
- Seamless user experience. By leveraging the existing BofA platform functionality and infrastructure, the adoption of LSAs is a smooth experience for employers and employees alike. Employers will manage the benefit offering through the existing employer portal and account processes including reporting, and employees will access their account information through existing health benefits solutions’ mobile and web portals.
- Addressing employee needs. LSAs were created in response to employers looking to maintain a healthy, happy and productive workforce—going beyond traditional benefits. Comprehensive workplace benefit programs that consider employees’ full financial picture and provides them with what they need promotes employee engagement. And more engaged employees are more productive—helping businesses thrive.