Many people are at least somewhat familiar with HSAs (health savings accounts). These tax-advantaged savings vehicles are coupled with high-deductible health plans (HDHPs). In order to open a health savings account, one must have a qualified HDHP (sorry for all the acronyms!) Whether you have a personal plan or an employer-sponsored plan, the HSA plan option has probably been offered to you sometime in the past several years.
For the most part, folks tend to stay away from HSAs because they are unusual and seemingly present a much higher out-of-pocket risk. Perhaps you didn’t understand how HSAs could benefit you and avoided them. It’s also possible that you evaluated the plans thoroughly and made an informed decision to stay with a traditional copay plan. HSAs are not a good fit for everyone.
Well, as a result of the Affordable Care Act and the expected high rate increases, experts are saying that HDHPs and HSAs will become much more attractive due to the premium savings. All plans, including HDHPs will be required to include the 10 “essential health benefits” in 2014. These benefits and the other mandatory provisions of ACA will cause premiums to increase substantially. The word I hear from carrier reps and industry insiders, is that premiums will increase by approximately 30-40% in Georgia. So, people who were unwilling to consider HDHP plans will be more likely to take another look.
I have been a big proponent of HSA compatible plans since they were first established in December 2003. Often times, when people do a cost/benefit analysis, they are suprised to learn how much they could save with an HSA plan.
The point of this post is not to promote HSAs or explain the details of how they work. My purpose is to alert people to the fact that HSAs may become a desirable, cost-effective option due to Health Care Reform. Now is a good time to learn more about HSAs. As an expert in this area, I will be glad to help answer questions, provide quotes and help you prepare for the coming changes in the world of health insurance.
