If you manage clients on COBRA software, chances are you may manage HSAs as well. This blog addresses concerns about HSAs and COBRA and how these two work together. A great resource to help participants learn if they can pay for COBRA premiums with an HSA, if you can contribute to your HSA while on COBRA and more.
Mental health issues skyrocketed during the pandemic. Meanwhile, about 10% of the American workforce, or 16 million people, have more than one job. With those facts in mind, it’s unsurprising that employee burnout is a continuing problem. The good news is that employer-sponsored benefits can help mitigate burnout. What is burnout? As defined by the World Health Organization, “Burnout is a syndrome … resulting from chronic workplace stress that has not been successfully managed.” Sufferers of burnout
Healthcare consumerism is a movement to make healthcare services more efficient and cost-effective. It transforms an employer’s health benefit plan, putting the economic purchasing power and decision-making in participants’ hands. Consumerism aims to enable patients to become wholly involved in their healthcare decisions. What drives healthcare consumerism? Customers can access features, benefits, and cost comparisons in most industries to guide their purchasing decisions. In contrast, the healthcare industry presents many choices, contact points, and service
The 2022 Kaiser Family Foundation Employer Health Benefits Survey reported that PPOs (Preferred Provider Organization) remain the most common health plan type, with 49% of covered workers enrolled in them in 2022, as opposed to 29% in a high-deductible plan (HDHP). Employees in the PPO pool may reduce their healthcare expenses with the tax-advantaged option of Flexible Spending Accounts (FSAs). But this option remains largely misunderstood so here are some Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) about FSAs.
Popular with Millennials, HDHPs paired with HSAs can help employers improve employee satisfaction with healthcare benefits. Millennials are Embracing HDHPs Millennials are active supporters of consumer-directed healthcare. Now in their late 20s through early 40s, they tend to be healthier than their older workforce peers (Gen X and Baby Boomer generations) and, on average, spend less on healthcare costs. Nearly half of Millennials who are eligible for an HSA through their employer are adopting one.
An HSA is a health benefits account that provides tax advantages, where participants can deposit a portion of their income before payroll taxes are deducted. To be eligible for an HSA, the account holder must be actively enrolled in an HDHP. The maximum contribution limit, which determines the amount individuals can set aside each plan year, varies depending on whether they have single coverage or family coverage.
Rising healthcare costs have people more actively managing their healthcare expenses. Many are doing so with the help of consumer-directed healthcare (CDH) resources like Flexible Spending Accounts (FSA) and Limited Purpose Flexible Spending Accounts (LPFSA). To increase employee utilization of these accounts, it’s important to provide education on FSA and LPFSA basics regularly throughout the year.Flexible Spending Account BasicsA standard FSA is a health benefits account to which participants contribute money deducted from their paychecks
HRA BasicsWhat is an HRA? Health Reimbursement Arrangements (HRAs) are tax-advantaged arrangements that reimburse individuals for qualified healthcare costs. HRAs were first acknowledged by the IRS in 2002 as benefits that employers could offer current and former employees, including retirees. Legislative and regulatory activity has since modified some of the rules about HRAs and created new types, including Group Benefit HRAs, Individual Coverage HRAs (ICHRAs), Qualified Small Employer HRAs (QSEHRAs), and Excepted Benefit HRAs (EBHRAs).FundingEmployers fund HRAs to reimburse
A Health Reimbursement Arrangement (HRA) is part of consumer driven healthcare. While HRAs have the same basic legal guidelines as other types of reimbursement accounts, they differ in that they’re funded exclusively by the sponsoring employer. Funding amounts and eligible expenses are unique to each employer.
Many employers embrace HSA-eligible, High Deductible Health Plans (HDHPs) to reduce premium costs, pairing them with Health Savings Accounts. While the primary intent of HSAs was to help reduce the cost of healthcare through tax-free contributions, earnings, and withdrawals, they also offer less well-known benefits. Here are six additional ways HSAs can help account owners make the most of their tax-advantaged savings. No Reimbursement Deadlines HSA account owners can receive reimbursements for eligible expenses at ANY