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Thursday, March 31, 2016

80% of O.Care Plans are ineligible for this Tax Break

The high-deductible health plan and the health-savings account: we tend to think of them as the peanut butter and jelly of consumer-driven health care. Yet the two aren't in fact inseparable, causing many consumers in high-deductible plans to miss out on possible tax savings, according to a recent study.

A study early this year from ValuePenguin, a financial education website, found that only 19% of health plans on the federal Obamacare marketplace were eligible for health savings accounts (HSAs), even though the vast majority of them had high deductibles. HSAs help ease the financial burden of high-deductible plans by allowing workers to sock away pretax money to pay for qualifying medical expenses before their deductible is reached and the health plan’s coverage kicks in. When a marketplace health plan is eligible for an HSA, the consumer in that plan would have to go to a nearby bank or other financial institution to open his own account — an extra step, for sure, but one that can reap rewards down the line.

Since HSAs are portable and never expire, tax-free funds can be withdrawn for eligible medical expenses now or in retirement. “They are really advantageous,” said Jay Savan, a partner at Mercer, a consulting firm in Atlanta.

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6 comments:

Anonymous said...

Except the banks slap on a nice monthly fee to chip away at your HSA funds.
And there are few banks that offer HSA accounts
It is a complicated issue that few know how to manage.

Anonymous said...

this is just another reason why we need Trump.

Drew said...

I am very pleased with HSA plan, we have had one for years. Best thing Bush did.
Get to put a sizable amount of tax deductible money away to spend on any health care you need. If you don't spend it you leave it there to accumulate. I make the max deposit every year, nice little nest egg that I tap here and there.

Anonymous said...

So I just received my Care First renewal notice today and my monthly premium went up about 20 percent from $600.00 a month to $725.00 per month (single coverage) Thank you OBAMA!!!! (NOT) It pays for
basically "nothing" during the year and 99 percent out of pocket during the year. Hope all the "free loaders" are appreciating my hard work all year long in order that they can stay home all day and live off the government.

Anonymous said...

That is all well and good 804PM....however, I am thinking the maximum limit to contribute to a health savings account is 3350.00 for an individual. Correct me if I am wrong. With that, my premiums being over $7000.00 a year would not come close to what the limit I can contribute to a HSA.

Anonymous said...

Yes, 953, but if you both stay healthy all year and don't need health care, 804 gets to keep his in the bank for his future use. You, however, lose your $7k and start paying it all over again next year.