HSA Plans??

[Geor!]

What are the benefits of these? It was always my understanding that the plans are designed to be quite a bit lower than a typical 80/20 insurance plan. I called my insurer last month and got a quote and was shocked to hear that the HSA plan was only about $20 less per month than the 80/20 plan I'm currently on. So, if ALL expenses come out of pocket until my deductible, and I'm only stashing away an additional $20/month, what the hell is my incentive for switching over to an HSA plan? Yeah, I know that there are other perks in them, such as the money being used for retirement later on down the road, but that's what my retirement fund(s) are for.

Basically, it seems as if everyone is touting the shit out of HSA plans these days, but I really have no idea why.

[YALE]

The benefit is there if you plan on spending more than your deductible for the year already. That's pretty easy if you're old and go to the doctor all the time, but you don't need one if you don't go very often. The other advantage is that HSA deductions are pre-tax deductions, so they lower your taxable income. More to the point: if you were going to spend thousands a year on medical care, spending it pre-tax would be much more advantageous than spending it post-tax.

[Roscoe]

It's about paying for medical with tax deferred money.

[Shorty]

My employer kicks in $2000 a year if you use the HSA. I'm young and healthy so it's a no brainer. I don't use more than a couple hundred of it a year. It's good if you need very little or a lot of medical per year.

[Nash B.]

It's about paying for medical with tax deferred money.

Ya, I used mine for Lasik this year. Free money!

[jakesford]

My employer kicks in $2000 a year if you use the HSA. I'm young and healthy so it's a no brainer. I don't use more than a couple hundred of it a year. It's good if you need very little or a lot of medical per year.

This, I am young and healthy, with no prescriptions etc. so instead off paying a high premium that I do not take advantage of, I can put that money back tax free and keep it. It does suck covering the high deductible