A revolution in healthcare has taken without many people even noticing the changeover into 2009. This significant change took place without the help of government healthcare agencies, media outlets, or or professional politicians. The switch is from traditional comprehensive health plans to leave her health savings accounts.
While presidential candidates were proposing complicated and far-reaching health-care reform many insurance companies, doctors, HR departments, and insurance agents had already discovered and started using what could be the answer to America's health care challenges. In 2003, a high deductible health plan (HDHP) was combined with a health savings account (HSA). Many have quietly been taking advantage of this remarkably simple and affordable healthcare combination.
Simple economics is why this quiet revolution has begun, and it's quickly spreading throughout the business community. If you are currently purchasing health insurance for yourself or others you'll immediately see the value of this combination compared to comprehensive insurance.
When you combine HDHP and HSA small businesses and large corporations have a new affordable option to offer their employees for health protection. While many do not have an employer provided health insurance option, HDHP HSA option gives those who are self-employed and affordable way to secure themselves against catastrophic injury and illness. This option even can be used by the government for a new system which would distribute health care costs, without hassle and bloated bureaucracies for regulating, pricing, and policing each aspect of healthcare.
So how does it work. An HDHP is a health insurance policy that begins paying for medical care after a high deductible has been met. A "high deductible" is defined as starting at approximately $1,100 and going higher depending on the price you or your employer are willing to pay for coverage. In this way a HDHP is much more like real "insurance" in that it will typically only be used for catastrophic illnesses or injuries and not for routine care. So how do routine and non-catastrophic doctor visits get paid. That's where the Health Savings Account (HSA) comes in. An HSA is a type of bank account that any person or employer can open. Money can be deposited into this HSA tax free by an employer, the individual, the government, or any combination of the three. In all cases the individual is the one who owns the bank account and can spend that money on almost any healthcare expense they wish. Regardless of who put it there, the money in the HSA always belongs to the individual and it never expires.
So what does the HSA do? The HSA (Health Savings Account) is a type of bank account opened by an employer or by any person. Money is deposited into the HSA tax-free by an employer, individual, the government, and or any combination of the three. For any of the options, the money in the HSA always belongs to the individual and never expires.
As an example, a company that is currently providing comprehensive health coverage to one of its employees for $600 per month could stop providing comprehensive health coverage and instead provide an HDHP for perhaps $200 per Month. The additional $400 being saved could, if the company decided, be put directly into that employee's HSA. Now that employee accumulates $400 every month to use on more frequent medical expenses or to save for future deductibles while having the protection of an HDHP in case of catastrophe. A small business, which could never afford $600 per employee per month for comprehensive health coverage, could instead offer an HDHP by itself and may also contribute a small amount per month towards the HSA, thereby offering medical benefits where it couldn't before and expanding the number of people who are insured. That money will always belong to the employee for their lifetime or until they spend it, and the employee would always decide what doctors, what procedures, and what medicines they spend it on. The same scenario could apply to government health programs as well.
By implementing this simple HDHP and HSA combination, we can easily eliminate the restrictive brock receives an escalating cost of healthcare and revolutionize the way healthcare is done in America. We have more freedom, lower costs, less bureaucracy, and more people insured. It's a simple solution for businesses, our citizens, and the nation.
More information about HSAs can be found at the U.S. Department of the Treasury website http://www.ustreas.gov/offices/public-affairs/hsa/faq.shtml. - 15438
While presidential candidates were proposing complicated and far-reaching health-care reform many insurance companies, doctors, HR departments, and insurance agents had already discovered and started using what could be the answer to America's health care challenges. In 2003, a high deductible health plan (HDHP) was combined with a health savings account (HSA). Many have quietly been taking advantage of this remarkably simple and affordable healthcare combination.
Simple economics is why this quiet revolution has begun, and it's quickly spreading throughout the business community. If you are currently purchasing health insurance for yourself or others you'll immediately see the value of this combination compared to comprehensive insurance.
When you combine HDHP and HSA small businesses and large corporations have a new affordable option to offer their employees for health protection. While many do not have an employer provided health insurance option, HDHP HSA option gives those who are self-employed and affordable way to secure themselves against catastrophic injury and illness. This option even can be used by the government for a new system which would distribute health care costs, without hassle and bloated bureaucracies for regulating, pricing, and policing each aspect of healthcare.
So how does it work. An HDHP is a health insurance policy that begins paying for medical care after a high deductible has been met. A "high deductible" is defined as starting at approximately $1,100 and going higher depending on the price you or your employer are willing to pay for coverage. In this way a HDHP is much more like real "insurance" in that it will typically only be used for catastrophic illnesses or injuries and not for routine care. So how do routine and non-catastrophic doctor visits get paid. That's where the Health Savings Account (HSA) comes in. An HSA is a type of bank account that any person or employer can open. Money can be deposited into this HSA tax free by an employer, the individual, the government, or any combination of the three. In all cases the individual is the one who owns the bank account and can spend that money on almost any healthcare expense they wish. Regardless of who put it there, the money in the HSA always belongs to the individual and it never expires.
So what does the HSA do? The HSA (Health Savings Account) is a type of bank account opened by an employer or by any person. Money is deposited into the HSA tax-free by an employer, individual, the government, and or any combination of the three. For any of the options, the money in the HSA always belongs to the individual and never expires.
As an example, a company that is currently providing comprehensive health coverage to one of its employees for $600 per month could stop providing comprehensive health coverage and instead provide an HDHP for perhaps $200 per Month. The additional $400 being saved could, if the company decided, be put directly into that employee's HSA. Now that employee accumulates $400 every month to use on more frequent medical expenses or to save for future deductibles while having the protection of an HDHP in case of catastrophe. A small business, which could never afford $600 per employee per month for comprehensive health coverage, could instead offer an HDHP by itself and may also contribute a small amount per month towards the HSA, thereby offering medical benefits where it couldn't before and expanding the number of people who are insured. That money will always belong to the employee for their lifetime or until they spend it, and the employee would always decide what doctors, what procedures, and what medicines they spend it on. The same scenario could apply to government health programs as well.
By implementing this simple HDHP and HSA combination, we can easily eliminate the restrictive brock receives an escalating cost of healthcare and revolutionize the way healthcare is done in America. We have more freedom, lower costs, less bureaucracy, and more people insured. It's a simple solution for businesses, our citizens, and the nation.
More information about HSAs can be found at the U.S. Department of the Treasury website http://www.ustreas.gov/offices/public-affairs/hsa/faq.shtml. - 15438
About the Author:
Dr. Eric Stamper, O.D. is a Hendersonville, Tn Optometrist and owns Visionary Eyecare Center. Dr. Eric Stamper received his optometry degree in May of 2007 from Southern College of Optometry in Memphis, where he graduated with honors in the top 10 percent of his class.
