San Francisco Urges Workers to Claim SF City Option Funds Before May 2026 Deadline

The City and County of San Francisco urges workers whose employers contributed to the SF City Option program to take action by May 21, 2026, to keep access to their funds.

Employees who have unclaimed money or an inactive San Francisco Medical Reimbursement Account (SF MRA) must take a simple step to activate their account by May 21, 2026. If no action is taken, any funds or accounts that have been unused for at least three consecutive years will be permanently closed and funds will no longer be available.

Workers can keep their accounts active by completing any one of the following actions before the deadline:

• Call SF City Option Customer Service at (877) 772-0415 and confirm their information
• Submit a claim for reimbursement — learn how here
• Receive an employer contribution fund in their account
• Submit an SF MRA enrollment form — learn how here

Workers can also visit the SF City Option website and use the “Funds Finder,” an online tool that helps them check if they have an account and learn more.

How the program works

SF City Option allows employers to meet requirements of the San Francisco Health Care Security Ordinance by contributing funds for employee health-related expenses. Once employees enroll in their SF MRA, they can be reimbursed for a wide range of health and wellness costs for themselves or their families, including:

• Health insurance premiums
• Lab tests
• Dental care
• Feminine hygiene products
• Baby formula

A list of eligible expenses can be found at: https://sfcityoption.org/sfmra/mra-eligible-expenses/.

Since 2008, more than 5,490 employers have participated in SF City Option, contributing more than $2.3 billion to support health and wellness expense reimbursement for approximately 496,000 employees.  Of that amount, nearly $1.86 billion has already been paid out in reimbursement or moved into active employee SF MRA accounts.

In 2022, the City updated the program’s policies to align with California Government Code Sections 50050 et seq., which addresses long-unclaimed funds held by local agencies. Under the policy, unless action is taken by May 21, 2026, any SF City Option account that has been inactive for at least three consecutive years will be permanently closed and those funds will no longer be available.

The City began tracking account activity in March 2023 and has been regularly notifying the more than 160,000 people who may have unclaimed funds or inactive accounts.

Important Reminder:

Employees can keep their funds indefinitely as long as their account remains active—even if they change jobs or move out of the area. Funds remain available until the balance reaches zero. Workers must complete one of the activation steps by May 21, 2026, to keep their account open. Accounts that remain inactive will be closed, and remaining funds will be transferred to the City’s General Fund under state law.