The Health Savings Account (HSA) is becoming well-known as an incredible tool to reduce health insurance premuims and yet provide good security for healthcare emergencies.

But what should consumers watch out for? Are there good HSAs and bad HSAs?

The answer is “not really.” All HSAs are made to be quite similar, by federal law. They must conform to the national standards.

However, there are some subtlies that differentiate HSAs as, not good or bad, but maybe good and better.

The first thing to ask about an HSA is about the fees that the HSA custodian charges. Find out all the fees, including setup fee and annual fees. It is reasonable to pay a small setup fee ($25 or more) but I would not expect an annual fee to be charged.

Your next question should be directed towards the investment options. Many HSAs offer only a “money market” type of account. This is really not desirable. The best option for investing your HSA money (which could become quite substantial if you do not use it up year-after-year) is in a low-risk mutual fund. My suggestion is to invest the HSA money in a government bond fund or a corporate bond fund. These funds often make more than 5% gains in a year, but they do not suffer the dramatic ups and downs of stock mutual funds.

You do not want an HSA to be jumping up and down in value, because it might not be there when you really need it. And you never know when that will be.

You might also want to compare your comfort level between a local insurance agent versus an HSA Website. For me personally, I prefer a local agent who I can talk to and see in her office. An HSA Website makes me a little nervous. I probably wouldn’t put my money into an Internet bank for the same reason.

Health Savings Accounts (HSA) are here to stay, and they are going to change healthcare as we know it. Be part of the future! HSAs are available today!

Daryl Kulak is the author of the book “Health Insurance Off the Grid - A Wonderful Way to Use Alternative Medicine and Save Money on Insurance Using the New Health Savings Account (HSA).” The book provides a nine-step plan to get your self-employed or small business health insurance costs under control using a unique approach you won’t find anywhere else. The book is available for sale as an e-Book or paperback at the Website http://www.healthoffthegrid.com

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The medical industry, unlike virtually every other business, loves to keep their prices secret. They do this, very simply, so they can make more money. Only by shopping your medical care, demanding price transparency, negotiating for the best price, and carefully reviewing your bill can you be assured that you are getting a fair price, and not being ripped off.

A dramatic example is the price hospitals charge of open heart surgery. The Valley Hospital Medical Center in Las Vegas, Nevada charges $233,259 for open heart surgery involving a heart valve replacement. The Mayo Clinic, recognized as one of the top heart care centers in the world, charges $79,601 for the same procedure. As another example, The Miami Herald recently published an article about hospital pricing in Florida. A woman going to Palmetto General Hospital in Hialeah for physical therapy following a car accident had tried to find out what the treatment would cost her, but to little avail. After eleven sessions she started receiving the bills - $1,560 per visit. She was able to find the same service at Memorial Regional hospital in Hollywood, FL for only $50 per visit.

Hospital Overcharges

Anyone who has ever tried to decipher a hospital bill knows that they can be next to impossible to understand. This conveniently makes it easy for hospitals to hide improper charges by using mysterious medical technology and codes. Whether through deliberate overcharges or honest errors, experts estimate that hospitals overcharge patients by $10 billion a year, or an average of $1,300 per hospital stay.

Hospitals have been known to charge $129 for a “mucus recovery system” that was really a $2 box of tissues, $57.50 for a “free” teddy bear, and even $1,004 for a toothbrush. Most people never see an itemized statement, and so have no idea what they’re being charged for.

Nora Johnson, a medical billing advocate, was quoted in a recent article saying that over 90% of the hospitals bills that she has audited have had gross overcharges.

Hospitals often go to extraordinary lengths to discourage you from delving too much into your bill. Nevertheless, there are some specific things you can do to make sure you’re not getting taken for a ride.

• If possible, call the hospital’s billing department ahead of time and ask them what you will be charged for a room and what that charge includes. If it doesn’t include something you might need, such as tissues, bring your own.
• Ask your doctor to estimate your cost of treatment.
• Bring your own prescription medications to avoid paying top price for medications purchased from the hospital.
• If possible, keep your own lists of tests, medications, and treatments. Hospitals have been known to charge men for pregnancy tests and adults for newborn tests.
• Never pay the bill before leaving the hospital. You may be told this is required, but it is not. Before paying your bill read it carefully, and compare it to the estimated costs you were given before being admitted.
• Demand an itemized bill, and ask for a detailed explanation for any items you don’t understand. Don’t accept generic answers like “lab fees” or “miscellaneous fees”.

Health Savings Accounts Promote Price Transparency

Health Savings Accounts (HSAs) are plans that have a high deductible, and a savings account in which tax-deductible contributions can be placed. The money in the account can be used to pay deductibles and other charges not covered by health insurance. The great promise of health savings accounts is that they will re-inject market competition into the healthcare market. As all of us who were fortunate enough to take Economics 101 understand, the balance of supply and demand provides the public with the greatest value at the lowest possible cost. If company B can produce and distribute the same quality widgets as company A, but at a lower cost, then the average price of widgets will fall, more people will be able to afford more widgets, and the average quality of a widget will increase, as businesses compete for customers. This is a wonderful system, and is part of what has made the United States the wealthiest country in the world.

Unfortunately, this system has not been in play when it comes to healthcare, because the consumer has not typically been paying the bill. As a result, the consumer doesn’t care what the service costs, and most doctors, hospitals, and pharmacies are very reluctant to reveal their (high) prices.

Health Savings Accounts are now changing all that. Millions of people have purchased these plans because of the lower premiums and tax advantages they offer. This has made consumers much more aware of what they are being charged. By demanding to know prices up front, HSA holders will begin to force medical providers to compete on price and quality, just like any other business does.

By Wiley Long - President, HSA for America - http://www.health–savings–accounts.com. HSA for America makes it easy to learn about and set up Health Savings Accounts that best meets your needs. Please link to this site when using this article.

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The Health Savings Account (HSA) is an amazing tool that a lot of people have been talking about. It is meant to help you save money on insurance and make your life simpler, maybe even help you be healthier.

A Health Savings Account is an investment. You may not have thought of it that way, but it is.

When you open your HSA, your insurance agent or financial advisor will ask you “How do you want to invest this?”

Your answer to that question might mean the difference between having money for that emergency operation or not having it.

There isn’t room here for a big explanation of investing principles, but I can tell you that there are volatile investments and stable investments.

A volatile investment would be putting money into a fast-moving stock on the stock market. One day it’s up, the next day it takes a dive.

The most stable investment is a bank account. You get paid a certain interest rate and that’s that. No volatility. And not much benefit either, because the interest rate will be quite small.

My recommendation to you is to invest your HSA money into a bond mutual fund. Bonds are a special type of investment that are less risky than stocks, but more beneficial than a bank account.

By investing in a bond mutual fund, you’ll have a steady rate of growth with no big up’s or down’s. Some months your investment might go down a little, but it won’t be dramatic. And, over time, you’ll beat that bank account interest by several percentage point.

Bond mutual funds are your best option for HSA investment. Ask your HSA custodian if they offer this type of investment for their HSA. If they don’t, shop around until you find one who does.

If you cannot find someone offering a bond mutual fund, then stick with a money market account. That is your second-best choice. You want something very stable, because you never know when you’ll have to tap into that money. Healthcare emergencies don’t give us advance notice, do they?

Health Savings Accounts will change how we think of healthcare. They are the key to fixing the current healthcare crisis in America, and they will help your small business, self-employment or individual healthcare situation.

Daryl Kulak is the author of the book “Health Insurance Off the Grid - A Wonderful Way to Use Alternative Medicine and Save Money on Insurance Using the New Health Savings Account (HSA).” The book is available for sale as an e-Book or paperback at the Website http://www.healthoffthegrid.com

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