HSA Talk for July 21, 2025
HSA news is compiled weekly by Mr. HSA, Roy Ramthun.
News from Washington
Court Nixes Leaving Medical Debt Off Credit Reports
A federal judge in Texas vacated a Biden-era rule that would have removed medical debt from consumers' credit reports, agreeing with Trump administration and credit industry arguments that the policy exceeded regulators' authority. State laws that prohibit credit reporting agencies from including coded medical information on reports are preempted by the federal act, the judge ruled.
Compliance Corner
When You Are No Longer HSA-Eligible, Can You Still Make Tax-Free Distributions?
Once you become HSA-eligible and establish your account, you can reimburse tax-free all qualified expenses that you, your spouse, and your tax dependents incur indefinitely. You must meet eligibility requirements to open and fund a Health Savings Account, but you do not have to remain HSA-eligible to reimburse qualified expenses tax-free.
Must Group Health Plans Cover Additional Breast Cancer Screenings?
Starting in 2026, employer group health plans, including HSA-qualified plans, must cover additional breast cancer screenings and pathology evaluations without cost-sharing if the results of the initial mammogram indicate that further imaging is needed or to complete the screening process. However, this does not affect HSA eligiiblity under IRS guidance.
HSA Industry News
Webster Financial Hangs Hat on HSA Provisions in Tax Bill
Webster Financial is expecting a financial boost from favorable HSA provisions in the tax legislation signed recently by President Donald Trump. Now that the law has been signed, significant tailwinds are expected to materialize, Webster President and COO Luis Massiani said during a call with investors on July 17.
Market Trends
Here’s Why You Might Be Spending More on Health Care Next Year
Battered by multiple years of high health care costs, employers are planning to shift more of the expense to workers in 2026, a new survey finds. Just over half of employers are planning to adjust their health insurance offerings to increase staffers’ share of the cost, such as instituting higher deductibles or annual out-of-pocket maximums.
ACA Insurers Plan Biggest Rate Hikes in Eight Years
Health plans on the Affordable Care Act marketplaces are requesting their biggest premium hikes since 2018, in some cases over 30%, according to a new analysis from KFF. ACA premiums are on track to rise by a median 15% next year, based on 105 filings submitted across 19 states and D.C. that KFF examined.
Best Practices
How to Connect the Dots Between Retirement, Health Benefits for Workers
Too often, health care and retirement benefits are managed in silos by organizations, leading to missed opportunities for both employers and employees. HR professionals have a unique opportunity and responsibility to connect these benefits and educate employees about how health and retirement plans can work together to support long-term financial and personal well-being.
HSAs & Retirement
Boosting Retirement Income With Health Savings Accounts
Medical expenses have been on the rise in the United States for decades, and it will only get worse after we turn age 65. But HSAs offer an avenue to reduce those expenses with several tax benefits, including tax-deductible contributions, tax-free growth, and tax-free withdrawals for qualified medical expenses.
Can HSA Owners Really Save Enough to Cover Their Retirement Medical Expenses?
Wherever you are on your life journey and HSA ownership, view your account as part of your retirement savings strategy. You may not accumulate a sufficient balance to cover all your qualified expenses in retirement. But every dollar that you contribute to your HSA will have greater spending power than the same dollar placed in any other investment.
Consumer-Driven Health Care
15 Solutions for Managing High Insurance Deductibles
Insurance sounds great until it asks for thousands upfront. That’s when deductibles feel less like protection and more like a hurdle. Still, not every step has to be hard. There are options—simple ones—that don’t require perfect timing or huge savings. This article breaks down useful ways to deal with those rising costs, such as using an HSA.
Surprise Medical Bills Were Supposed to be a Thing of the Past. Surprise — They’re Not.
The No Surprises Act, which took effect in 2022, was rightly heralded as a landmark piece of legislation, which “protects people covered under group and individual health plans from receiving surprise medical bills,” according to the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services. And yet bills that take patients by surprise just keep coming.