The primary purpose of the Health Savings Account (HSA) is to enable American consumers to invest in their own future health care costs. Coupled with a high-deductible HSA-qualified health insurance plan, an HSA provides financial long-term benefits which are unavailable with traditional health insurance plans.

“A health savings account is a good deal, and all Americans should consider it…
These accounts will be good for small business owners and employees…
This will help more American families get the health care they need at the price they can afford.”
– President
George W. Bush

On January 1st, 2004, an Act passed by Congress made tax-free Health Savings Accounts accessible to all American consumers. Health Savings Accounts allow you to quit trading dollars with insurance companies, take control of your health care expenses, and directly benefit from staying healthy.

The Basics - How the HSA works

An HSA Plan is actually made up of two parts -- a high-deductible health insurance plan coupled with an IRA-like savings account (the HSA).
The monthly premium for the health insurance policy costs less than traditional health insurance plans, and you deposit the savings into your Health Savings Account .
You use the HSA to cover pre-deductible expenses (non-catastrophic), like doctor office visits, lab work, prescriptions, and dental care. All expenses paid from your HSA are applied directly toward your insurance policy's deductible (provided the expense constitutes an eligible expense on your insurance policy).
You are issued a debit card (like a VISA check card) or checks for your HSA account, so paying your expenses with your HSA remains simple.
Once your insurance deductible is met for any given year, you're covered by the insurance at 100% (for all eligible expenses as defined in your policy), and no longer need to use your HSA for those expenses.
The funds deposited into your HSA, as well as any eligible expenses paid from your HSA, are tax-free, and any unused funds are yours to keep.

Advantages of the HSA

You own the HSA -- it is transferable, accrues interest, and the balance grows and continues to roll over year after year.
Many HSA Administrators (the financial institution handling your account) give you access to convenient tools like online banking, and investment options for your HSA funds. These tools allow you to track your balance and expenses easily, and the investment options (mutual funds, for instance) allow you to get more of a return on your money than typical interest alone.
Unlike traditional health insurance plans, you directly benefit from staying healthy. The money in the HSA is yours to keep whether you use it or not. With traditional health insurance, many people will pay extra premium for benefits like office visit copays, only to realize they've wasted money because the family stayed healthy all year - not the case with an HSA.
There are no limitations as to what you spend your HSA funds on; however, only IRS-defined eligible expenses are tax-free, and only eligible expenses in accordance with your insurance policy will apply towards your deductible. Once your HSA balance exceeds your policy's deductible, spend the excess on whatever you wish, or just continue to save that money and reap the tax benefits -- afterall, it's your money. Note: Penalty fees may be charged for ineligible expenses.
An HSA health plan does require some additional risk by you when you first begin the plan because you have a large deductible on your insurance policy, but little in your Health Savings Account. However, the long-term benefits of the HSA plan eclipse the short-term risk: A few years into an HSA plan, you will have 1) paid less in taxes each year, 2) the balance in your HSA will be large enough to cover most, if not all, of your insurance deductible, and 3) the increasing balance of your HSA gains more interest, and your option to invest that money gives you access to even more of a return -- all tax-free. There is little doubt that once you've reached this point, you will never desire a traditional health insurance plan again. Check out our HSA Example for an illustration.

Our HSA Plans

At Plan Builder USA, we give you access to a wide range of HSA-qualified plans from many of the top-rated insurance carriers in the nation. Assurant Health was one of the first carriers to develop true HSA-qualified plans just after the legislation passed, and they remain a leader in Health Savings Accounts. They are one of the few carriers to administer Health Savings Accounts themselves, assuring seamless integration, and they continue to research and develop new HSA-qualified plans and convenient tools to simplify your HSA accounting and investment. Other carriers such as Humana have recently launched new HSA-qualified plans which offer competitive options and premiums, and we continue to research the available carriers and their offerings to ensure that our customers have access to the best HSA options in the nation.

Curious if a Health Savings Account is right for you? Call us at 1-888-888-8057 or submit an Online Quote Request! We can custom-fit an HSA Plan to your needs and ensure that you get the most from every dollar spent on your health insurance.

* Deductible required once per year, 100% coverage to Lifetime maximum ($3 Million to $9 Million per person)

Plan Builder USA specializes in health insurance; we are not in the business of tax accounting, and our representatives are not trained or qualified to give tax advice. For advice and specifics of the tax advantages of Health Savings Accounts, please seek the counsel of a professional tax service, accountant, or other qualified financial institution.