Does FSA cover toothbrushes?
Toothbrushes are a general toiletry, not medical care, so they aren't a qualified FSA expense — manual or electric.
What flips the answer
- Covered when
You're paying instead for dental treatment — a cleaning, filling, or care for dental disease.
- Not covered when
It's an ordinary manual or electric toothbrush (or replacement heads) for daily hygiene.
IRS Publication 502 treats toiletries and items used for general health — toothbrushes, toothpaste, and similar hygiene products — as personal expenses that don't qualify.
The reason is the purpose test: a toothbrush maintains everyday hygiene rather than treating a specific disease or condition, so it's carved out of eligible expenses even though it supports good health.
Dental treatment is what qualifies — cleanings, fillings, and care for dental disease are eligible FSA expenses. The drugstore hygiene item on its own is not.
That's the general answer. Yours is written in your actual policy.
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