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Thursday, January 05, 2012

Consumers Are Using HSAs to Control Healthcare Costs

Employers and consumers are adopting health savings accounts (HSAs) to manage their healthcare costs without compromising care, according to two national surveys. Seventy-seven percent of small employers believe that high deductible health plans (HDHP) with an HSA are key in controlling healthcare costs. Additionally, 56% of account holders have found that their HSA-qualified plan provides an affordable healthcare option, according to the “2011 Employer and Account Holder Surveys,” commissioned by ACS, A Xerox Company and conducted by Buck Consultants. “HSAs are doing more than just saving consumers and employers money. They are prompting a shift in behavior that is helping employees make better decisions about their own healthcare,” said Tom Hricik of ACS.

Three-quarters of respondents say that the ability to control their own health costs is an extremely or very important benefit of HSAs. Account holders are setting aside more money to cover potential medical costs than before they had an HSA (54%); engaging in healthier lifestyle choices (18%); researching preventive care programs (18%); shopping for lower priced prescription drugs (28%); and planning healthcare better throughout the year (31%). People perceive that they consume medical services at approximately the same rate but are shopping around for care more than before.

Employers report that the cost of providing HSA-qualified plans is less than the cost of providing a standard PPO. The average direct cost to provide an HDHP/HSA is $5,469 for individual coverage and $9,909 for family coverage. In comparison, the average PPO cost is $7,158 for individuals and $10,691 for family.

Surveyed employers are extremely committed to offering employer-sponsored health insurance and retaining their HSA-qualified plans. Only 6% said they are very likely to discontinue the HSA-qualified plan. And only 7% said they are very likely to move employees to future healthcare exchanges.

Other significant findings include the following:

• The average employer that implemented an HDHP and HSA program has 49% of eligible employees enrolled.

• 69% of employers contributed to their employees’ HSA accounts.

• Employer HSA contributions average $1,000 for individual coverage and $1,500 for family coverage.

• 72% of account holders chose the HSA-qualified plan over other plan options.

• 82% of account holders said that the ability to save tax-free money was extremely or very important in selecting an HSA-qualified plan.

• 79% of account holders say that having an HSA is valuable to them.

• Sixty-four percent of account holders say that their HDHP/HSA combination meets their family’s needs

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