Your Money: Tax breaks on red light masks and hot dogs

It probably never occurred to you that you could buy organic meat or a $9,000 sauna with a tax-favored account.

View in browser|nytimes.com July 21, 2025 By Ron Lieber Hi everyone — I've spent the last several weeks working with my colleague Ben Mueller on an article about a company called Truemed. The 3-year-old start-up helps people use their flexible spending and health savings accounts to buy things that they otherwise couldn't without a note from a medical professional. For instance, it probably never occurred to you that you could buy organic meat or a $9,000 sauna with these tax-favored accounts. But you can, according to Truemed, just as long as the medical professionals the company partners with say that you need the meat to lose weight or the sauna to treat some other medical condition. The I.R.S. has issued an alert about this sort of thing, but it doesn't seem to have gone any further. You know who could put a stop to it, though, if they thought it was a problem? The administrators who run flexible spending accounts for companies. So here's an ask: If any of you have had notes from Truemed (or any other company, or any medical professional) rejected by your employer's flexible spending account administrator, will you please let us know? You can reach us at yourmoney_newsletter@nytimes.com. Have a good week. Jens Mortensen for The New York Times A Kennedy Aide's Start-Up Can Get You a Tax Break on a $9,000 Sauna The start-up, called Truemed, helps people buy meat and mattresses with money that isn't subject to federal income tax. But does the tax break apply? By Ron Lieber and Benjamin Mueller Student Loan Repayments Are About to Look Very Different By next summer, new borrowers will have just two repayment options, streamlining the previous menu to pay off higher-education debt. Here's what to know. By Tara Siegel Bernard retiring 5 Years Ago, They Reversed Roles With Their Parents. Where Are They Now? Most young adults don't expect to support their aging parents. Here's what happened when four people had to. 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