HSA News for September 18, 2023
HSA news is compiled weekly by Mr. HSA, Roy Ramthun.
News from Washington
House Lawmakers Unveil Bipartisan Legislation Tackling Health Care Cost and Price Transparency
House members from three key committees introduced a bipartisan health care bill aimed at addressing price transparency, prescription drug costs and workforce investment. The legislation includes provisions that would require hospitals to publicize the standard prices for all items and services in a readable format and require upfront transparency on the cost of imaging services and laboratory testing.
HSA Compliance Corner
Can I 'Have' a General Health FSA and an HSA? Yes. Or No.
A general Health FSA disqualifies you from funding a Health Savings Account. You're covered (unless the plan specifically excludes spouses or children) by a general Health FSA if you or your spouse is enrolled. You can't contribute to an HSA for any month that you're covered by the general Health FSA, even if you don't request reimbursement.
HSAs and Medicare (Part 3): the Part A Retroactive Period
What happens when you enroll in Medicare well after 65? Let’s look at the myriad problems that can arise between the Medicare rules and the HSA laws, and catch older workers off guard as they exit an employer’s group health insurance and move into Medicare coverage. Trying to fund your HSA properly in the 9 months before switching to Medicare is no easy task.
HSA Industry News
Lynx Redefines Consumer-Directed Health Account Management with Launch of CDH Core Platform
Lynx announced the formal launch of its Lynx CDH Core platform that enables financial institutions, TPAs, benefit administrators, health plans, tech companies, and other entities to fully own their experience while reimagining a more modern and consumer-friendly. The platform leverages fully programmatic APIs and white-labeled experiences to manage the full lifecycle of CDH accounts, including HSAs, FSAs, HRAs, LSAs, wellness incentives, and rewards.
HSAs & Retirement
4 HSA Benefits You Don't Want to Miss Out on in Retirement
A Health Savings Account can be an incredibly powerful tool when it comes to helping you cover your healthcare-related expenses. But HSAs can be powerful tools when it comes to your retirement as well. Here are four HSA benefits you won't want to miss out on in retirement.
Are You A Late Boomer Who Fell Behind On Retirement Savings? Here’s 3 Ways You Can Catch Up
Many Americans, particularly in the “late” Baby Boomer cohort, have fallen behind on saving for retirement, according to a recent study. One way to catch up is if through a Health Savings Account. While these funds are earmarked for health and related expenses, they are yours to keep.
Maximizing Your HSA
Here's Why an $850 Medical Bill Didn't Prompt Me to Raid My HSA
Although my family has enough of a balance in an HSA to cover a recent $850 orthopedist bill, I opted not to raid my HSA and instead take the money out of my savings account. Because I knew I had the money in savings, I figured it made more sense to take a withdrawal from there than to tap my HSA and lose out on the chance to invest that $850 in a tax-free manner.
Four Reasons to Make a Limited-Purpose Health FSA Election
Federal tax law allows active HSA contributors to also participate in a Limited-Purpose Health FSA. If you don't anticipate incurring qualified dental and vision expenses during the Health FSA plan year, you're better off contributing more to your HSA. After all, you never forfeit those funds. But if one of four situations applies to you, a L-P Health FSA may be an important financial ally.
Consumer-Driven Health Care
Generic Drugs Should Be Cheap, but Insurers Are Charging Thousands of Dollars for Them
Once the patent on an expensive medicine runs out, lower-priced copies go on sale, promising significant savings. But certain generic drugs are still costing thousands of dollars monthly. An analysis by the Wall Street Journal found that across a selection of these so-called specialty generic drugs, insurers prices were multiple times higher on average than roughly what the medicines’ manufacturers charge.
As More Patients Email Doctors, Health Systems Start Charging Fees
Spurred by the sharp rise in email messaging during the covid pandemic, a growing number of health systems around the country have started charging patients when physicians and other clinicians send replies to their messages. Billing for e-visits, however, raises knotty questions about the balance between fairly compensating providers for their time and enhancing patients’ access to care.
‘Dr. Google’ Meets Its Match: Dr. ChatGPT
The accuracy of chatbot-delivered medical information may represent an improvement over Dr. Google, but there are still many questions about how to integrate this new technology into health care systems with the same safeguards historically applied to the introduction of new drugs or medical devices.