Grad Employee Wellness Reimbursements
If you're eligible for Trust Fund benefits, you can submit a valid receipt to be reimbursed for up to $225 per plan year towards expenses for exercise or fitness. Valid receipts are for activities which take place primarily within the plan year (Sept 1 - Aug 31 of each year) but receipts are due by June 30th annually.
Eligible wellness activities & items
Eligible activities: promote fitness and stress reduction through physical exercise. Examples include gym memberships, yoga, dance, aerobics, pilates and martial arts classes, golf and ski fees, marathon, road race and endurance course fees, swim fees, intramural sport fees, court fees and ice rental fees for related sport, state & national park passes and camping fees. Weight loss programs with fitness components, workout program DVDs, personal coaching/fitness tracking devices (examples include Apple watch, Fitbit and Garmin Vivosmart, but all brands are eligible, excludes accessories and only 1 per person per plan year), fitness and personal training apps, mental health apps and out-of-pocket mental health costs* not covered by insurance.
If you use UMass Recreation, we receive information directly from the gym about your memberships and you will not need to upload a receipt. When you apply for benefits, just select "UMass Recreation Center membership accepted." Then, go to UMass Recreation and purchase your membership. UMass Recreation will inform us of your purchase and we will reimburse you according to the amount of membership fees UMass Rec reports you to have paid.
Equipment Purchases will be eligible for reimbursement up to the existing plan year maximum of $225. Equipment must have been purchased on or after the official start of the current plan year's first open enrollment (8/15) and be used to support health and well-being, including weights and dumbbells, resistance bands, yoga mats and blocks, treadmills, ellipticals and rowing machines, bicycles and stationary bikes, sport equipment like balls and rackets, camping and backpacking equipment, skis and snowshoes, ergonomic desks and chairs, face masks and other personal protective equipment (PPE) for yourself, and headphones. Final approval of equipment purchases is per the decision of the Trustees.
Both on campus and off-campus gym are eligible. Yearly membership fees, monthly service fees, locker fees and on-site equipment rentals required for the activity are eligible; late fees are not.
Eligible Out-of Pocket Mental Health Costs and Apps: Out-of-pocket mental health costs that aren't otherwise covered by insurance are eligible for reimbursement. Documentation supporting the request must be provided but need not disclose personal information. In the case of out-of-pocket mental health costs, only the following is required: date, signature and title of health provider, total amount paid out-of-pocket. Final approval is per the decision of the Trustees.
Special Circumstances
Individuals who have special medical or disability needs and have requests that certain adaptive programs be deemed eligible may submit requests on a case by case basis. Documentation supporting the request must be provided but need not disclose personal information. A letter from a medical professional stating that the adaptive program or item would benefit you is all that's required. Letter should be dated within the current plan year and include signature and title of health provider. Please redact all other personal information. Final approval is per the decision of the Trustees. To request reimbursement, log in to your dashboard at hwtrust.geouaw.org and click on "Graduate Employee Wellness Reimbursement" and then check the box indicating your receipts are for special circumstances.
Family wellness costs: eligible wellness costs for your family (spouse/partner/children) are now eligible toward your $225 reimbursement. Family members do not receive their own $225 reimbursement. Your spouse, partner or child must be enrolled on your Trust Fund benefit plans in order to be eligible.
Activities that aren't eligible include: massage, acupuncture, health costs, spa treatments, facials, clothing and shoes. Receipts for other non-related individuals are not eligible.
Receipt Guidelines
Valid receipts are dated, clearly show the name of the institution to which fees were paid or the name of the item purchased, and show the period of the activity paid for. Examples include: a dated receipt from a gym with the total paid and membership dates, a copy of your bank statements with dates and identifiable charges to the gym, copies of dated cancelled checks, etc. Non-cancelled checks are not valid receipts. Please redact your account information if you submit bank statements or cancelled check copies.
Month to month gym payments: only charges dated after 9/1/22 are eligible. Please plan accordingly as we only accept two submissions per year--you can group receipts together and submit them in two batches, making sure to submit your final batch as close to the deadline as possible to maximize your reimbursed charges.
Semester or yearly plans: a majority of the months represented on the receipt must fall within the plan year to be eligible (i.e. though dated in Aug/Sept, UMass Fall 2022 gym receipts are eligible for plan year 2022-23; receipts for the previous summer are not).
Complicated receipts: If your receipt has multiple parts or you are submitting several receipts from different places or from stores where the itemization is not detailed, please help us by notating your receipt to make it easier to read. Here's an example of what we mean.