| News from Washington |
| Democrats Hit Pause on Biden’s Climate, Social Spending Package Senate Democrats are putting President Biden’s climate and social spending plan on the back burner as they plan to debate voting rights legislation this month and hold a vote on changing the Senate’s filibuster rule. Democratic aides say the Build Back Better bill won’t be ready for floor action any time soon and predict the wide-ranging legislation may have to be completely overhauled. Read More |
| White House Preparing to Ask Congress for More Funding for Therapeutics, Vaccines, other Coronavirus Health Needs White House officials are working on a request to Congress for an additional coronavirus-related health spending package as the nation continues to battle the pandemic. Officials in the White House Office of Management and Budget and Department of Health and Human Services have started putting together a longer-term funding request that is expected to ask Congress for tens of billions of dollars more. Read More |
| IRS Announces Tax Relief for Colorado Wildfires and Straight-Line Winds Victims of wildfires and straight-line winds in Colorado beginning December 30, 2021 now have until May 16, 2022, to file various individual and business tax returns and make tax payments, the Internal Revenue Service announced. This includes 2021 individual income tax returns due on April 18. Affected taxpayers will have until May 16 to make 2021 IRA (and HSA) contributions. Read More |
| HSA Compliance Corner |
| Healthy Resolutions for the New Year? Don’t Reimburse a Gym Membership! Getting in shape may be a goal for the new year. But if you were planning on paying your membership dues with pre-tax withdrawals from your HSA, you may be running a compliance risk. The federal tax code is clear. If you engage in an activity to improve your general health, your expenses associated with that activity are not qualified. In some cases, however, a gym membership may be a qualified expense. Read More |
| The HSA Market |
| HSA Employee Survey: Interest on the Rise Corporate Insight recently conducted a survey of over 1,200 digitally engaged HSA participants. We found that HSAs represent an increasingly valued resource—one that benefits administrators would be well advised to educate themselves on. The results of the survey provide a deep dive into how participants perceive, access and use HSAs. Read More |
| Why Doesn’t Every Employee Enroll in a Health Savings Account Program? According to a survey, in roughly half of all companies, more workers are enrolled in the HSA-qualified plan than other plans. That percentage declines at larger companies. Overall, among all companies with 50 or more employees surveyed, only 38% report that an HSA-qualified plan enrolls the most employees. The natural question is why. Read More |
| No Emergency Savings? New Workplace Benefits Aim to Help Employers are increasingly offering a number of ways employees can build emergency funds, from savings programs through banks to special accounts alongside traditional retirement plans. HSAs can also be used to cover emergency medical needs. Surveys show there is also an advantage in attracting new hires and retaining employees for employers who offer financial wellness benefits. Read More |
| HSAs & Retirement |
| The Ultimate Retirement Savings Account? Surprise, It’s an HSA! Saving money is often mentioned as one of the core steps toward financial success. Also important is deciding where to save money, as there are numerous options to consider and all have their own rules, benefits and tax implications. But there is one account that may be the most valuable and, at the same time, the most overlooked: the health savings account. Read More |
| How Do Roth IRA, Traditional IRA, HSA, and 401(k) Work? According to most advice, it’s best to start saving for retirement as soon as possible. When it comes to choosing the best retirement savings plan, many people struggle to make a decision. Others are at loss about how an HSA can fit in their retirement savings plan. Let’s go over each of these plans to see how they work and how you can leverage different plans to maximize savings for your senior years. Read More |
| IRS Allows a One-Time Transfer from Your IRA to Your HSA: Another Strategy to Reduce RMDs Thinking about what one’s taxable income could be once their required minimum distributions start is an investment strategy worth exploring. One strategy that many are not aware of is using the Qualified HSA Funding Distribution–a direct transfer of funds from your IRA to your HSA. This transaction is not taxable or subject to the 10% early distribution penalty. However, there are many rules to follow. Read More |
| Maximizing Your HSA |
| Be Sure You Understand HSA Rules Better Than This Owner or Her Bank! Not all HSAs are created equal. Account owners who don’t know this may lose some valuable benefits. Like all other financial instruments, HSAs involve trade-offs. Their key features are attractive to many Americans. But it’s important to identify which drawbacks are inherent in the design of the HSA program and which are mistaken beliefs about the program. Read More |
| Consumer-Driven Health Care |
| 21 Hacks to Reduce Your Healthcare Costs This Year It’s no secret that healthcare costs have skyrocketed in recent years. Between rising insurance premiums and a lack of pricing regulation for everything from lab work to prescriptions, medical costs have soared. Fortunately, there are some ways to cut medical costs before they send you into debt. Learn how these healthcare hacks can save you thousands in medical expenses. Read More |
| What’s to Blame for the High Cost of Healthcare? The cost of healthcare is continually rising. Consumers are frightened and quick to place blame, much of which is landing on physicians and insurance companies. But they aren’t the main culprits. The truth is that there is not one single factor making healthcare more expensive. Technology, administrative expenses, pharmaceutical costs, and lifestyle choices all share part of the blame. Read More |