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December 20, 2006
Health Savings Accounts are the Right Choice
More than 3 million Americans today are covered by Health Savings Account (HSA) plans and that number is expected to soar to between 25 and 30 million by 2010, according to the U.S. Treasury Department.
Health Savings Accounts are the right choice when it comes to your health insurance because you save more than enough money on the premium and taxes to pay the higher deductible. Then, with a family, everyone contributes to the annual deductible so there's absolutely no reason to chose anything but an HSA.
Golden Rule health insurance has played a key role in the consumer-driven market for more than a decade. A United Healthcare company since 2003, Golden Rule pioneered the concept of high-deductible health plans paired with tax-advantaged savings accounts in the individual market back in the early 1990s when it introduced the first Medical Savings Account (MSA) plan. With the passage of federal legislation late in 2003, millions of consumers with HSA plans throughout the country are saving on a tax-advantaged basis for current and future health expenses.
At Golden Rule today, more than 40% of our customers are covered by HSA plans. These customers had accrued more than $170 million dollars in their Health Savings Accounts by 2006 and the average account balance exceeded $2,400 – strong evidence that HSAs are working the way Congress intended.
To help enhance the long-term savings potential and make HSAs easier to use, Golden Rule recently began offering its HSA customers a broad selection of high-quality mutual fund investment options as well as an innovative debit card and online account management and bill paying through Exante Bank.
With Exante Bank serving as custodian, Golden Rule HSA customers earn four- to five-percent interest on their FDIC-insured accounts. Once the balance in their HSA reaches $2,000, they now have the option to invest any amount in excess of $2,000 in a choice of eight no-load mutual funds, all of which have a Morningstar rating of four stars or higher.
New online account-management tools also enable customers to monitor and change their investments at any time, check balances, pay bills and withdraw funds. The customer, at no charge, can set up automated recurring mutual fund purchases to occur whenever the account balance exceeds $2,000.
Moreover, the Exante MasterCard Prepaid Debit Card provides customers with multiple ways to access their HSA funds, including use at participating pharmacies and doctors’ offices or through ATM withdrawals. In addition to the debit card and online bill-paying features, customers can use wire transfers and a more traditional checkbook if they choose.
Learn more about how to get your own Health Savings Account at: http://www.health--savings--accounts.com
Posted by Wiley Long at December 20, 2006 02:07 PM