Health Savings Accounts? I am considering this option with the required High Deductible Health Insurance plan.
I have researched the pros and cons, the advantages and risks.
Any added input would be appreciated.

Only real disadvantage is losing any excess money you put in it. I have one at work now. I just slide my HSA debit card every time I need to pay for a co-pay or any medicine. Works pretty well.

mairving Wrote:Only real disadvantage is losing any excess money you put in it. I have one at work now. I just slide my HSA debit card every time I need to pay for a co-pay or any medicine. Works pretty well.

You must be confusing an HSA (Health Savings Account) with an FSA (Flexible Savings Account), Mairving. You cannot lose money with an HSA. You can lose money you shelter in an FSA with your employer if you declare more dollars to be sheltered than you can actually spend in one year.

The only way you lose money in an HSA is if your bank goes out of business and the FDIC forgot to recognize them as fully insured up to $100,000 per account. j/k.

HSA's are excellent ways to keep more of your money in a tax-deferred growth account and save on medical insurance at the same time. I've never had one, but I know many who do and they seem to really enjoy theirs. It is especially popular with those who enjoy good health and have few medical bills while they are still young. It will come in handy if you become increasingly ill in your later years. If you happen to live a long and healthy life, you will enjoy accessing those 'unspent' dollars you socked away in your HSA (with tax-free interest) in your retirement years!

I'd go for it.

Hmmm maybe I should look in to one of those. We have a high deductible plan. At first I was a little leery because some other people were have problems with it. I had not really dealt with it until this year when my son was born. I was really surprised at how little I ended up spending for that and how much the insurance company covered. The only problem with that was we bet on my not getting sick this year. So an HSA sounds good.

Don't know about HSA's but just signed up for a FSA at my work. My plan adds a 3 month grace period to allow extra time to spend any unused funds. I like the fact that most major stores use an inventory system that codes and automatically seperates qualified products for payment using the FSA card. I also like that the amount I choose is available from day one and deductions are made throughout the rest of the year. It's like getting pre-tax dollars on an interest free loan. I'm new to it but it seems like a great plan. My questions were adequately answered by the plan administors website.

eltigre Wrote:Don't know about HSA's but just signed up for a FSA at my work. My plan adds a 3 month grace period to allow extra time to spend any unused funds. I like the fact that most major stores use an inventory system that codes and automatically seperates qualified products for payment using the FSA card. I also like that the amount I choose is available from day one and deductions are made throughout the rest of the year. It's like getting pre-tax dollars on an interest free loan. I'm new to it but it seems like a great plan. My questions were adequately answered by the plan administors website.

Coincidentally, I help enroll employees of large companies enroll in these type plans every day via phone and Internet. Many of our accounts use a debit card for their unreimbursed medical expenses. It's like a card loaded with your un-taxed income that you eventually pay back to yourself by the end of the year. Your testimonial for FSA's was perfect.

But, again, this is completely different from HSAs.

I understand HSA's can be rolled over from year to year, so you don't lose any money, and they are portable from job to job. They are good for self-employed folks like myself who can get a tax deduction putting money in, take it out tax-free as long as it's for medical expenses (which, BTW, can include over-the-counter things like aspirin and medical devices without prescription), and then, the money can be accessed tax-free in your retirement years. The money is yours, always available for any emergency, but you will pay taxes and a penalty on it if it's not used for medical expenses. It is the honor system; you just keep your receipts for medical expenses and use your debit card as you see fit. You can pick your own doctors and specialists.
Some High Deductible plans offer free preventive health services, like annual physicals.
I know it's a crap shoot, but it seems like I would rather pay money into my own health savings account and run a risk of losing it to medical expenses rather than pay a much larger insurance premium every month to an insurance company that is just money gone forever. And you can choose your High Deductible amount, capping your possible exposure to $1000-$5000 a year. You also earn interest on the savings account, and can invest a portion in the stock market (scary right now.) Someone described it as a Super-super-Roth. You can also use your medical debit card for medical expenses for a dependent, whether they are enrolled in the plan or not.
Am I seeing this clearly?

21-17 Best Time I Ever Ha Wrote:I understand HSA's can be rolled over from year to year, so you don't lose any money, and they are portable from job to job. They are good for self-employed folks like myself who can get a tax deduction putting money in, take it out tax-free as long as it's for medical expenses (which, BTW, can include over-the-counter things like aspirin and medical devices without prescription), and then, the money can be accessed tax-free in your retirement years. The money is yours, always available for any emergency, but you will pay taxes and a penalty on it if it's not used for medical expenses. It is the honor system; you just keep your receipts for medical expenses and use your debit card as you see fit. You can pick your own doctors and specialists.
Some High Deductible plans offer free preventive health services, like annual physicals.
I know it's a crap shoot, but it seems like I would rather pay money into my own health savings account and run a risk of losing it to medical expenses rather than pay a much larger insurance premium every month to an insurance company that is just money gone forever. And you can choose your High Deductible amount, capping your possible exposure to $1000-$5000 a year. You also earn interest on the savings account, and can invest a portion in the stock market (scary right now.) Someone described it as a Super-super-Roth. You can also use your medical debit card for medical expenses for a dependent, whether they are enrolled in the plan or not.
Am I seeing this clearly?

I have a Health Savings Account and high deductible insurance. i highly recommend this approach to your insurance.My HSA is at Bancorp South. Only a few banks have them (Regions did not at the time I opened mine).

My high-deductible insurance is $5000 deductible at Blue Cross.

I contribute once per quarter to the HSA. I contribute the max amount allowed by law (Google HSA on the internet). The way I do mine is that I just pay medical related expenses out of my regular checking account. My checking account records are in Quicken software on my PC. At the end of each calendar quarter, I have Quicken do a report of my medical-related expenses (doctor bills, contact lenses, prescriptions, dentist, over-the counter meds, long-term care insurance premiums).

Then I go to my HSA and write myself a reimbursement check to cover that quarter's medical expenses. This keeps my HSA activity to a minimum. I could get a debit card for the HSA and pay directly, but I prefer this way myself. Checks for the HSA are expensive, so I try to use very few.

PM me if you want more details.

First State Bank on Houston Levee in Collierville and Atoka has a really good HSA program.

For 75% of people a HSA with high-deductible insurance is a really affordable option.