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IRS Releases 2009 HSA Amounts
The Internal Revenue Service has increased for 2009 the maximum allowable annual Health Savings Account contribution, the out-of-pocket maximum amounts for HSA-qualified high-deductible health plans, and increased minimum deductibles for HSA plans.
Please see below for more detailed information.
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IRS Issues New 2009 HSA Plan Limits
Up 3.5% to 4.5% on Average |
 Eligible individuals with self-only coverage under a high-deductible health plan (HDHP) may contribute an annual maximum of $3,000 to their Health Savings Account (HSA) for 2009.
- Eligible individuals with family coverage (coverage for two or more individuals) under a HDHP may contribute up to $5,950 to their HSA.
- Catch-up contributions. Individuals age 55 or older who are not enrolled in Medicare may contribute more to the account per year. In 2009, an additional $1,000 contribution will be allowed. In 2008, the catch-up contribution was $900.
To be considered qualified for an HSA in 2009, the HDHP must meet the following IRS regulations:
- The minimum deductible amount must be $1,150 for self-only coverage and $2,300 for family coverage.
- The out-of-pocket maximum must be no higher than $5,800 for individual or $11,600 for family coverage.
- The HDHP must be set up with a combined medical/pharmacy deductible. This deductible must apply to the out-of-pocket maximum (no change from 2008 requirement).
- All medical and pharmacy services must be subject to deductible and out-of-pocket maximum except for preventive services.
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| The Health Savings Account Option
Employees Become Discriminating Health Care Shoppers |
 Is an HSA an option for your company? Have you retired early, not yet qualified for Medicare, and carry your own individual health care coverage? Do you have children who just graduated from college and who no longer qualify for your employer's plan? If so, you too might want to consider an HSA.
We have found that rarely does an HSA provide a financial panacea for group health plan sponsors. The incentives for participation bring the short-term cost per employee up to the cost of alternative plan options.
However, looking more long-term, HSA's sensitize employees to the cost of health care goods and services, when each acquisition is done with their own money. Each debit to the HSA account gets just a little more scrutiny. Long-term, it is reasonable to expect HSA financial results to be better than non-HSA approaches.
HSA's can also significantly improve employee satisfaction with a health plan because certain items otherwise excluded from the health plan may be purchased directly with tax-deferred HSA dollars if they are considered an eligible medical expense under Section 213(d) of the Internal Revenue Code. For those who need regular maintenance items not covered by a traditional plan, this can be a substantial enhancement.
Lastly, the HSA contributions, once deposited, never revert to the employer. Annual contributions provided as incentives for participation are owned into perpetuity by the employee. That perception of tangible value and ownership can be a major source of employee loyalty.
The HSA Handbook is a resource provided to BBCG as an appointee with United Healthcare's Golden Rule Insurance subsidiary. Although it keys on the needs of individuals versus groups, virtually all the concepts can be equally applied to a group insurance approach. Please note that HSA rules and regulations change annually and that this resource was current only as of its original publishing date.
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About Boca Benefits Consulting Group, Inc.:
BBCG, Inc. has been providing brokerage and consulting services to Florida employers since its formation in 1996. Its principal consultant, Robert W. Murphy, has 28 years of insurance carrier management and consulting experience. He holds an advanced financial degree and four of the most prestigious financial services designations in the industry (REBC, ChFC, CLU, RHU). He has been a panelist/speaker at a national conference on the future of healthcare and was a participant at a Harvard University executive program entitled "Skills for the New World of Health Care."
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Voluntary Benefits Checklist |
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1. What level of additional service do we receive from the commissions earned on the voluntary benefits that are sold to our employees?
2. Is our approach more reactive to end-user television advertising or proactive in terms of maximizing our return on this investment?
3. Do we take advantage of communications that are uniquely designed specifically to deliver the messages we want our employees to receive?
4. What kind of resources do we devote to our annual enrollment process?
5. Could our voluntary plan pay 100% of the cost of one-on-one enrollment services provided by a third party vendor and the special communication pieces?
6. If voluntary enrollments can be packaged with our core benefit enrollments and the data then electronically uploaded to all our benefit carriers, would that allow significant HR capital to be used more effectively somewhere else?
7. Can that same methodology be used all year long for new hires and requested benefit changes?
8. Do we have adequate protection of our benefits enrollment and payroll deduction data? What is the storage medium? Have we established redundant off-site storage of our data as part of our emergency plans?
9. How active has our voluntary carrier been in informing us of the above type of options?
Email us for more information:
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