| News from Washington |
| Thune-Carper Bill Would Expand Access to High-Value Services in HSA-Eligible, High-Deductible Health Plans Sens. John Thune (R-SD) and Tom Carper (D-DE) reintroduced the Chronic Disease Management Act, bipartisan legislation that would ensure that HSA-qualified plans can cover care related to management of chronic disease prior to a beneficiary reaching their plan deductible. The bill would allow patients greater flexibility in accessing the care they need. Read More |
| Sanders Unveils Legislation Capping Insulin Costs at $20 per Vial Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT) introduced a bill that would cap the list price of insulin at $20 per vial, building off Eli Lilly’s recently announced $35 monthly insulin cap. The senator has long advocated for drug pricing reforms and is also a prominent proponent of a Medicare for All system. Read More |
| HSA Compliance Corner |
| How Do HSA Rollovers Work When You Change a Job or Bank? You can use two different methods for moving HSA funds into a new account: a transfer or a rollover. If you want to carry out an HSA rollover, you must have your HSA send you a check for your account’s funds, then deposit those funds into a new HSA within 60 days. A trustee-to-trustee transfer is another method for moving funds into a new HSA. You can request in writing that the trustee of your HSA shift your funds to another HSA provider. Read More |
| HSA Industry News |
| Alegeus and Navia Strengthen Partnership to Deliver Best-in-Class Benefit Experiences for Employers and Employees Alegeus announced an expanded partnership with Navia to drive better experiences for individuals navigating rising medical costs. Read More |
| HSA Best Practices |
| Is Telehealth Really Saving Money for Employers? As the popularity of telehealth among employees and employers continues to grow, many companies are looking at the benefits of the virtual model and its potential to save time and money. But is it an option that can positively impact costs for employers—and employees? To some extent, that is yet to be seen as organizations evaluate their experiences, but there is already evidence to suggest that virtual care can be a more cost-effective option. Read More |
| The HSA Market |
| Why Banks Are Interested (Again) in Health Savings Accounts While many organizations provide Health Savings Accounts to consumers, all HSAs must be deposited in banks—just like any other type of savings account. And as you might have guessed, banks are the organizations most directly impacted by federal fund rate increases as they hold the deposits. Here’s what we’re seeing from banks and HSAs in this current economic climate. Read More |
| HSAs & Retirement |
| If You’re Close to Retirement and Have a Health Savings Account, Don’t Make This Expensive Mistake I am retiring this year and trying to understand Medicare. While researching, I saw a sentence about not having a Health Savings Account while being qualified for Medicare. My company has a high-deductible insurance, so offers an HSA. Since I am on their plan, I have the HSA. Shouldn’t that be the issue when I get on Medicare, not now? I have never heard of this. Did I read it wrong? Could you explain it? I like having my HSA and want to keep it. Read More |
| Here’s Why an HSA Is a Massively Underrated Retirement Account There’s a lot of debate about what the best retirement account is. But there’s one account that’s too often left out of the discussion. Health savings accounts aren’t technically retirement accounts at all. But people are increasingly using them for retirement savings because of the rare perks they offer. Here’s what you need to know to decide if an HSA is a good fit for you. Read More |
| How Much Will I Really Need for Health Care in Retirement? Determining how much you may need to retire comfortably demands more than back-of-the-envelope math. It requires realistic projections of future expenses, including housing, utilities, and insurance premiums. Trouble is, one of the biggest potential expenses during your golden years is also the most difficult to predict — health care. The cost of medical services and medications often soar as we age. Read More |
| Maximizing Your HSA |
| Want to Make the Most of Your HSA? Don’t Use It. Every dollar you put into an Health Savings Account is a dollar of income the IRS will not be able to tax you on. Plus, you might really need the money for healthcare bills. But if you’re going to fund an HSA, your best bet is actually not to take withdrawals to cover your ongoing healthcare costs, but rather to leave that money alone as long as possible. Here’s why. Read More |
| HSAs: More Than Just a Savings Account You probably know that HSAs are an excellent way to save on healthcare. They offer a triple-tax advantage, and their funds transfer between employers and roll over annually—no risk of losing them. But did you know there’s dozens of relatively unknown strategies to maximize your HSA? If you only take away a few tips from this article, it should be these three. Read More |
| How Much Is Enough? Should You Stop Funding Your HSA? Should a Health Savings Account owner limit her contributions to her account to minimize or eliminate a balance at her death? In most cases, the answer is a resounding no. In short, it’s hard to imagine anyone – regardless of tax bracket, lifetime income, or medical condition – who would benefit by ceasing further HSA contributions once they reach a certain balance. Read More |
| What Happens to You HSA Balances When You’re No Longer Alive? When we say that Health Savings Accounts are a permanent account – in contrast with a Health FSA which delivers similar immediate tax benefits but is an annual reimbursement plan. Your account outlives you if you die with a balance. What happens when you pass away before you’ve spent your balance? Let’s take a look. Read More |
| Consumer-Driven Healthcare |
| How Major Retailers Are Trying to Change How America Consumes Health Care Amazon, Walmart, CVS, Dollar General and other big retailers are elbowing their way into health care delivery, pushing a customized consumer experience driven by digital health products. A more user-friendly portal to the health system could lead to more engaged patients and better access to care in underserved areas. It could even yield a sustainable model for profitably offering better care for less money. Read More |
| Patients Caught in Drug Industry, PBM Battle on Copay Assistance High drug costs will linger for patients whatever the outcome of the latest battle between the pharmaceutical industry and health plans over drugmaker copay assistance programs, analysts say. Drug pricing researchers and analysts say there’s merit to both sides of the debate, leaving an ambiguous future for copay assistance programs. Read More |