| |
Health Savings Account (HSA)
One of the most recent developments to come along in the field of health insurance is the Health Savings Account (HSA). This new plan was approved by Congress and started on January 1, 2004. Its great feature is that it allows you to have a greater control over your health insurance money and even get some tax breaks, too. Here are some of the features of this great new program.
It Is Attached To A High Deductible Insurance Policy
The HSA is a feature that is attached to a regular health insurance policy - one that has a high deductible. The amount of the deductible is predetermined, and it would need to fall in the range of $1,050 and $5,250 for singles, and between the amounts of $2,100 and $10,500 for families.
Tax-Exempt Savings
When this plan was instituted, it provided for a way to use your deposited deductible money as a way to draw some interest and get a tax-free income. Any money deposited into your HSA, up to $2,700 for singles, or $5,450 for families, comes off of your taxable income. You can deposit funds into the account all the way up to April 15th, and still take it off of last year's taxes. This deduction is available whether or not you itemize on your taxes, and you can still get it even if you take the standard deduction. If you remain in rather good health, it also could provide a sizable retirement fund for you.
You Have Control
When you get an HSA, you will usually be given a credit type card that gives you access to the funds. Whenever you have a medical need, you simply use the card, and it is tax-free. The insurance company gets a record of all transactions, and knows what is deductible. Once you reach the deductible yearly limit – they pay all the rest. By the way, since it is your money, you can also use it to buy whatever you wish - but the only drawback is that it is only tax-exempt when used for medical purposes.
Increased Coverage
Another advantage of a health insurance policy with an HSA is that there are a number of new things that you will be covered for that a regular health insurance policy will not cover. While there are too many things to list here, they do cover some things like dental, mental, physical therapy, and even some alternative medicines, non-prescription medicines, and much more.
Lower Cost
Anytime that you increase your deductible on a health insurance policy you also lower the premiums. This puts the health insurance company at a lower risk. With the combination of the lower premiums, the tax-deductible income, and the tax-exempt money on your deductibles, you could have savings each year of more than $4,000 - $5,000.
|
|
|
Free Health Insurance Quotes
By comparing health plans with other rates, you should be able to find the right plan. You can get your free health insurance quotes at the following sites:
|
|
