Three Options for HSA’s
The HSACrusader has posted a nice article outlining more of the benefits of Health Savings Accounts - and in the following excerpt, he’s outlining the different approaches one can take as an individual HSA Consumer:
The number-one reason to get an HSA: the potential to plan and save for a lifetime of benefits.
The first option for using HSA dollars is to spend them now in order to maximize one’s health. This might mean paying for services not normally covered by traditional health plans. For example, a diabetic or a person with heart disease risk factors, such as elevated cholesterol, blood pressure or stress, might use tax-free HSA dollars for nutrition counseling from a registered dietitian to lower cholesterol and weight; exercise counseling to develop an exercise program; and stress-management counseling to lower stress in life. It can mean using HSA dollars to pay for “health coaching” from a wide variety of traditional and alternative health care professionals.
The second option is to save for future deductibles. Accumulating enough money in the HSA to pay several deductibles creates a comfortable feeling—you know you have already saved for your future health care expenses.
The third option is to accumulate unused dollars to spend during retirement. Fidelity Investments estimates that the average couple going into retirement will spend $190,000 in health care expenses not covered by Medicare. In a perfect world, maximizing health and savings now will lead to a substantial accumulation of money that ultimately pays health care expenses for the rest of one’s life.
Go there to read the rest of the article.
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