Is Washington Health Savings Account For You?

HSA’s or health savings accounts as they are more popularly known have increased over the years. In fact more than 2.5 million Americans already have HAS since it began back in 2005. But do you know that HSA’s are not for everyone. This is an important consideration particularly for those who are looking for a good Washington medical insurance. Here are some great tips to find out if your HSA will work well with your health insurance Washington.

1. Your health savings account can potentially reduce your insurance costs by an average of 40%.

If you are someone who pays all of your own WA health insurance premiums this might just work out well for you. Someone who is self-employed and are fairly healthy with few medical costs are usually the ones that benefit the most from these plans.

2. By having HSA, you increase your freedom of choice.

With an HSA plan, consumers are now back in control of their own health care. This also means that each individual must be more responsible for his or her own health care decisions. This isn’t always popular with or appropriate for everyone, especially those who enjoy the HMO-type “co-pay” plans.

3. You can use your HAS to reduce your income taxes.

Each dollar that you contribute to your HSA is deducted from your taxable income.  Whether you spend it or save it, it counts as as deduction similar to your IRA contributions. Also like an IRA interest and earnings accumulate tax free. Withdrawals are tax-FREE when used to pay qualifying medical expenses.

4. Prior to setting up an HAS you must have an existing Washington medical insurance policy.

IRS regulations are very specific on what qualifies as a plan, and not every Georgia health insurance plan with a “high deductible” will work.  Verify that you are insured under a properly qualified policy, talk to someone that knows!  Find a qualified and licensed health insurance broker that understands what a properly qualified HSA plan is.

5. Being insured makes you eligible for HSA-qualified health insurance policy.

Many people don’t have a proper high deductible account and will need to switch insurance plans to qualify. If coverage isn’t offered under small group reform laws, a new high deductible policy will have to be individually underwritten by an insurance company.  And that means that some “pre-existing” conditions will not be covered.  Some health conditions such as: diabetes, chron’s disease, heart attack - will simply not be able to qualify. Underwriting requirements vary by state and you will need to see what works in Washington.

You don’t want switch to a HSA plan when other things are more important than saving up-front medical insurance premiums. Look into this Washington health insurance option if your health is strong and there are no medical concerns.

It is a straightforward process. Complete an application and the insurance company make s a determination based on that and a possible phone interview.  Based on your answers, medical records may be requested, and companies always reserve the right to order an exam.

6. While you will find that HSA insurance premiums are low, however, not always as low as you might expect. Although an HSA has a “high” deductible, companies must compensate for the risk it is assuming over the deductible amount. Most of these plans are for whole families.  TSO in some instance,  premiums for a 5000 family deductible with 100% coverage after the deductible to be comparable to a 2500 “per person” deductible plan with 80/20 coverage after the deductible.

Lower premiums are only one part of the lower net cost achieved with an HSA plan.  Lower taxes are the other piece because of the tax-deductible contribution to the HSA account.

7. Be in control of your health insurance rate increases. There will surely be rate increases with your HAS policy but the actual dollar amount increases are significantly lower in contrast to the conventional PPO and HMO plans. Insurers base their increases on percentages, and the same percentage on a lower base premium results less actual dollars. So when you are looking at health insurance WA plans, consider this as one of your options.

Look for your fast, free Washington Medical Insurance Quote Today!