Health Savings Accounts (HSAs), in combination with a qualified high-deductible health plan (HDHP), are usually
\n touted as a way to lower insurance premiums and pay for out-of-pocket medical expenses with tax-free
\n dollars. <\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
Over time, some people are fortunate enough to accrue sizeable account balances in their HSA to use for future
\n medical expenses or even as a supplemental retirement benefit. And the really good HSA account holders have
\n become better \u201cconsumers\u201d of medical care. They tend to use their HSA dollars more wisely by doing things such
\n as requesting if a cheaper, generic drug can be prescribed instead of a brand name alternative. <\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
These are the types of things that are mostly advertised when someone is talking about the benefits of an HSA,
\n and these things should be considered when deciding if an HSA makes sense to open. However, there are a couple
\n of other things that also stand out when it comes to HSAs, but these things don\u2019t usually get as much attention.
\n One is from the account holder perspective and the other is from an employer\u2019s perspective. <\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
Benefit<\/strong> to the HSA Account Holder.<\/strong> Unlike Flexible Spending Accounts (FSAs) <\/p>\n Often, someone covered by an FSA or HRA will have a debit card provided to them to use for their expenses. Even <\/p>\n HSAs, on the other hand, have claim substantiation requirements, but\u2019s it\u2019s a self-substantiation requirement. <\/p>\n Benefit<\/strong> to the Employer<\/strong>. Many benefits offered by an employer are subject to <\/p>\n FSAs, HRAs, and self-insured medical plans are examples of plans subject to non-discrimination testing. Guess <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Health Savings Accounts (HSAs), in combination with a qualified high-deductible health plan (HDHP), are usually touted as a way to lower insurance premiums and pay for out-of-pocket medical expenses with tax-free dollars. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":442,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-376","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\n
\n and Health Reimbursement Arrangements (HRAs), HSAs do not require third-party claim substantiation. FSAs and
\n HRAs require someone other than the employee to verify the expense incurred was a qualified and eligible
\n expense. Usually, this is done by a third-party company who administers the FSA or HRA on behalf of an
\n employer. <\/p>\n
\n if the debit card is used at a doctor\u2019s office or hospital, the FSA or HRA administrator may need you to provide
\n additional documentation about the expense. Due to IRS rules, failure to provide the additional documentation in
\n a timely manner may lead to deactivation of the debit card or other actions. This creates a burden on FSA and
\n HRA participants. <\/p>\n
\n The HSA account holder is the one that verifies if an expense is or isn\u2019t an eligible expense. That means no
\n documentation or paperwork needs to be provided to a third party after an expense has been incurred. It makes
\n HSAs much more consumer friendly and easy to use in this respect. <\/p>\n
\n non-discrimination testing. These tests are generally designed to make sure rank and file employees are eligible
\n for and receiving similar benefits to highly compensated employees. These tests can be complicated and are
\n supposed to be performed throughout the plan year. Employers will usually need to rely on their legal counsel
\n for assistance or they\u2019ll need to outsource the testing. <\/p>\n
\n what? HSAs are not subject to testing. Administratively, that makes HSAs easier for an employer to offer. It
\n should be noted that HSA contributions made through a Cafeteria Plan are included in the overall Cafeteria Plan
\n non-discrimination testing, but HSAs do not have plan-specific testing that also applies like FSAs, HRAs and
\n self-insured medical plans do. <\/p>\n