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October 10, 2005
New paper released on Health Savings Accounts in Medicare
Consumers for Health Care Choices has released a paper urging Congress to make Health Savings Accounts available to Medicare recipients. It notes that the Medicare Modernization Act has made a Health Savings Account (HSA) available to all Americans except those on Medicare.
The tremendous number of people opening HSAs will result in a large number of people reaching age 65 with substantial balances in their accounts. They also will have experience controlling more of their own healthcare decisions, yet will currently have to drop that approach because of their age. The article notes that beneficiaries could fund the Medicare HSA with money rolled over from an under-65 HSA, or with money that would otherwise be spent on Medicare supplement coverage, or money that might be spent on out-of-pocket costs.
We support this idea, and believe it would be beneficial to Medicare recipients, as well as further the benefits that consumer-directed healthcare will have on the entire healthcare system.
Posted by Wiley Long at October 10, 2005 04:59 PM