HSA Focalpoint

Far From ‘Flawed,’ HSAs Fill a Huge Gap.

businessinsurance.com, May 12, 2008
When it comes to health savings accounts, it’s clear that Rep. Pete Stark, D-Calif., needs an education. Rep. Stark, who chairs the House Ways and Means Health subcommittee, last week described HSAs, and the high-deductible health insurance plans to which HSAs must be linked, as “flawed policy.” (Read More)

House Panel to Hold Hearing on HSAs.

businessinsurance.com, May 12, 2008
The hearing comes in the wake of the release of a survey by trade group America’s Health Insurance Plans that found enrollment in HSA-linked plans jumped to 6.1 million as of Jan. 1, 2008, a 35% increase from the same period a year ago. (Read More)

Georgia Gov. Perdue Signs Bill Establishing Tax Exemptions For Employer-Provided High-Deductible Health Plans.

healthnewstoday.com, May 12, 2008
According to former U.S. Speaker of the House Newt Gingrich (R-Ga.), founder of the Center for Health Transformation, as many as 500,000 state residents could gain health coverage through the bill. Gingrich said the bill is “ideal” and “moves us in the right direction.” (Read More)

HSA Enrollment Surges: Survey.

businessinsurance.com, April 30, 2008
Enrollment in health savings accounts linked to high-deductible health insurance plans continues to surge with 6.1 million people covered by HSAs as of Jan. 1, a 35% increase over Jan. 1, 2007, according to a survey released Wednesday. (Read More)

Milliman Report on 30,000 Employees with HSAs and HRAs.

hsacoalition.org, April 28, 2008
The results show that CDHPs are creating savings for employers of 4.8%. After adjusting for induced utilization typically found in high-deductible plans, the additional savings amount to 1.5%. The more significant savings should not be dismissed, however, because induced utilization is a key component of the savings strategy inherent to consumer-driven health plans. (Read More)

McCain Wants to Shift Health Insurance From Employers to Marketplace.

ahiphiwire.org, April 29, 2008
Under McCain’s plan, anyone could get the credit, and those who like their company health care plan could choose to stay in it. The credit would be available as a rebate to people at lower income levels who have no tax liability, Holtz-Eakin said. (Read More)

Senator DeMint Introduces ‘Health Care Equity Act.’

ahiphiwire.org, April 21, 2008
Sen. Jim DeMint (R-SC) recently introduced legislation, S. 2835, that seeks to achieve greater equity in the tax treatment of health insurance while also addressing a significant issue affecting Health Savings Accounts (HSAs). (Read More)

Health Savings Accounts may be a Good Option for Producers.

tristateneighbor.com, April 14, 2008
Ellen Laden, director of public relations for Golden Rule Insurance Co., says HSAs make good options a lot of the time for farmers, ranchers and small businesspeople who have to buy their own insurance. (Read More)

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Now That Your Taxes Are Done, Figure Out What You Could Save in 2008 by Using a Health Savings Account (HSA).

yahoo.com, April 28, 2008
Although the dreaded April 15 tax filing deadline has passed, you still have time to put your W2s and 1040s to good use. Information from these and other tax forms can help you take advantage of a new calculator on HSAInsights.com, which shows you what you could save by switching from a traditional health plan to a high deductible plan with a health savings account (HSA). (Read More)

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HSA Proposal Lacks Basic Common Sense.

businessinsurance.com, April 14, 2008

Industry experts peg the cost at about $3 per month per HSA account. With roughly 5 million HSAs now established, the cost-paid by employers and employees through higher charges that banks would impose-of this new requirement would come out to roughly $180 million a year. That would be six times more than the government would collect each year in new revenue.That doesn’t make sense to us and it shouldn’t to any member of Congress who takes the time to examine it. We hope this proposal dies a quick death. (Read More)

Health Care Costs Hard for Small Businesses to Absorb.

newyorkdailynews.com - April 14, 2008
Health savings accounts can offer a company a way to control costs and also get employees to take more responsibility for their own health. The use of a high-deductible plan along with a health savings account can actually be less costly to an employee than a traditional managed care plan. (Read More)

4.5 Million Enrolled in HSAs.

chiroeco..com, March 21 2008
A new census released by America’s Health Insurance Plans (AHIP) discovered that 4.5 million Americans - a 43 percent increase from last year - are covered by lower-premium, high-deductible health insurance plans offered in conjunction with health savings accounts (HSAs). (Read More)

Improvements Made to HSAs. Proposed Legislation would Increase Benefits.

AVMA.com, April 15, 2008
Proposed legislation currently before several House and Senate committees could substantially enhance the tax and coverage benefits of HSAs. (Read More)

2008 Health Care Survey Results.

producersweb.com - April 1, 2008

Benefits Selling teamed up with ChapterHouse, a leading health care strategy consulting firm, to assess the tenor of the market, and to identify innovative broker strategies that are beginning to contribute to a health care affordability solution. The purpose of this article is to share the insights gained in this research as they not only cast light on the impact of today’s strategies, but also to provide an early glimpse of future broker business models. (Read More)

Qualifying for a Health Savings Account.

kiplinger.com, March 21 2008

I am 60 and retired with sources of income from investments and pensions, but no earned income. Would I qualify for a health savings account if I took out a high-deductible policy? (Read More)

Number of Young Adults Without Health Insurance is Rising.

ahiphiwire.com, March 31, 2008

Young people are disproportionately represented among the uninsured. Even though they comprise just 17 percent of the under-65 population, young adults account for 30 percent of the nonelderly uninsured, according to the Commonwealth Fund report. (Read More)

Controlling Health Insurance Premiums with FSA, HRA, HSA Plans.

industryweek.com, March 24, 2008

Health insurance costs are rising much faster than inflation. But what can manufacturers do about it? One idea that seems to be working is giving employees “ownership” in their health plans. (Read More)

Healthcare Without Medicare
Special Report: Healthcare & Retirement.

financial-planning.com, April 1 2008

In addition to clean living and good health, Embrey’s client kept costs down by choosing a high-deductible plan. Better yet, clients can pair a high-deductible plan with a health savings account (HSA), as long as their health insurance policy meets certain requirements, such as a minimum deductible of $1,100 for an individual. (Read More)

If you are in a high-deductible health plan linked to a health savings account, you’ll have to start thinking about your insurance in a whole new way. Not only must you get your head around network rules, but you have to plan for surprises, manage your cash flow and even make investing decisions. (Read More)

Legislation Pushes Incentives for High-Deductible Plans and HSAs.

ahiphiwire.org.com - March 28, 2008

The bill would exempt insurers from paying taxes on premiums in the sale of the high-deductible savings account plans. Georgia health insurers typically pay a tax of at least 2.5 percent on premiums.
(Read More)

IRS Publication 969 Updated for 2007 Tax Filing.

irs.gov, March 2008
The IRS has released an updated version of Publication 969 (Health Savings Accounts and Other Tax-Favored Health Plans) for use in reparing 2007 tax returns. This publication summarizes information
about HSAs, HRAs, health FSAs, Archer MSAs, and Medicare Advantage MSAs, including brief descriptions of benefits, eligibility equirements, contribution limits, and distribution issues. It has been updated to reflect the 2007 dollar limits for HSAs and to incorporate the many changes that the Tax Relief and Health Care Act of 2006 TRHCA) made to the HSA rules, effective for 2007 (Download)

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HSAs A Significant Improvement Over Usual Health Coverage.

insurancenewsnet.com, March 12, 2008
Health Savings Accounts allow employees the freedom to choose how and when their HSA money is spent - improving their access to care - while still providing coverage for truly catastrophic and costly events. (Read More)

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Health Insurance For Self-Employed.

cnnmoney.com, March 17, 2008
If you take a high deductible on your health insurance policy, you’ll pay lower premiums and get a smaller tax deduction. But there may be tax breaks anyway. (Read More)
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Study Finds Widening Gap in Health Cost Hikes.

businessinsurance.com - March 13, 2008
Best-performing employers are 21% more likely to use financial incentives to drive plan member behavior than their poor-performing counterparts.Best-performing employers also had higher enrollment in consumer-driven health plans than their poor-performing peers. (Read More)

When Consumers are Driving Health Care

newsobserver.com, March 6, 2008
The next time you hear someone say the market is failing health care, ask him how much his last blood test cost. His failure to tell you won’t be a memory lapse, but a symptom of our system. (Read More)

First of its Kind HSA-FSA Superstore

prweb.com, March 5, 2008

Through this online store, which is exclusively HSA and FSA eligible items, shoppers can purchase whatever they want without the worry of whether or not their purchases are covered. (Read More)

TSYS Launches the Industry’s Most Advanced Healthcare Benefits Payments System

businesswire.com, March 3, 2008

TSYS Healthcare announced the successful market launch of the industry’s most advanced benefits payments system. Fringe Benefits Management Company (FBMC), the first third-party administrator to use this innovative solution, offers its subscribers the ability to pay from multiple healthcare tax-advantaged accounts, credit accounts and cash accounts through a single card. (Read More)

Consumer-Directed Health Plans Continue to Grow as Popular Vehicle to Bring Choice, Flexibility and Access to Consumers.

TheEarthTimes.org - March 4, 2008

Enrollment in Consumer-Directed Health Plans (CDHPs) continues to grow, spurring employers to offer more health care information tools to employees in order to leverage the true value of these products, according to a study commissioned by the American Association of Preferred Provider Organizations (AAPPO) from the consulting firm Mercer, Inc. (Read More)

Health Savings Accounts – A Leap of Faith

EMAILWIRE.COM, February 26, 2008

With a significant percentage of their patients on consumer-directed plans, providers would be forced to compete on cost and quality. But to reach that level of enrollment, we need a further price reduction on HSA-compatible plans. Insurance companies need to take a leap of faith. (Read More)

The ‘Worst’ Healthcare Payment Scheme

HealthLeaders Media, February 25, 2008

Maybe consumer-directed care will end up being the healthcare equivalent of what Winston Churchill said about democracy: the worst form of government–except for all the others that have been tried. (Read More)

Business Generated HSAs Surpass Individually-Purchased Offerings

managingyourhr.com, Feb, 2008

What is evident are trends showing that business managers are leaning towards HSAs as a way of reducing healthcare benefit cost while providing support for staff members. (Read More)

Health Savings Accounts Offer Employers and Workers a Tool for Cutting Premium Costs; Not Coverage

EVliving.com - Feb 25, 2008

Health Savings Accounts offer employers and workers a tool for cutting premium costs but not coverage, Neelman says. “At the same time, the accounts put control of health care decisions – and costs – back in the hands of workers.” (Read More)

Benefit Administrator Medcom to Offer First Horizon Health Savings Account to Employers

OVERLAND PARK, Kan., Feb. 19, 2008

First Horizon Msaver, Inc. announced today that it has been selected by Medcom, a leading employee benefit administrator based in Jacksonville, FL, to serve as the Health Savings Account (HSA) administrator for Medcom’s employer customers who offer HSA-qualified health plans to their employees. (Read More)

Health Savings Account Answers

Kiplinger.Com- Feb 22, 2008

Recently passed legislation will make HSAs an even better deal in 2007. Below are the most frequently asked questions we’ve received and the answers we’ve found. (Read More)

President’s Economic Report Addresses Challenges in Health Care System

AhipHiWire.com - Feb 19, 2008

On February 11, President Bush submitted his annual economic report to Congress, reviewing his Administration’s efforts to address challenges in the health care system and others sectors of the U.S. economy.

The report’s fourth chapter, entitled “The Importance of Health and Health Care,” includes a discussion of private sector and market-based solutions for reducing the growth of health care costs, improving quality, and expanding access to health insurance. The report discusses the rationale for many of the Administration’s health care priorities, including Health Savings Accounts (HSAs), a standard tax deduction for health insurance, a national marketplace for health insurance, association health plans (AHPs) for small employers, value-based purchasing, transparency of price and quality information, and adoption of health information technology. (Read More)

Many U.S. Consumers Want Major Changes in Health Care Design, Delivery

Deloitte.com - Feb, 2008

A new survey by the Deloitte Center for Health Solutions, part of Deloitte LLP, finds that many American consumers want more from their health care system than they’re currently getting - including greater online connection to health care providers and medical records, customized insurance coverage and wider access to emerging innovations such as retail clinics. (Read More)