Using an HSA Account

I get questions on a regular basis about HSA accounts, and how to open them and which expenses are eligible to use with and HSA account. I thought I would answer those questions here.

In my opinion, HSA's are the second best form of healthcare for United States Residents, especially those are are younger and generally healthy. The best, is a healthcare sharing ministry, but that is a topic for another article.

First, in order to open an HSA account you need two things; a qualifying health insurance plan, and a trustee to open the account with.

A qualifying health insurance plan is generally one that qualifies as a High Deductible Health Plan and will be identified by the insurance agency providing that plan. The best place to browse insurance plans is www.healthcare.gov Once you have established a health insurance plan, then you can open an HSA account, which simply operates like a bank account.  Searching for the term "open HSA account" will give you multiple results of companies that will open the HSA 'bank' account for you. 

Now that you have an insurance plan in place, an HSA opened, and funds in the account the question is what expenses can you use those funds for. The specific list of qualifying medical expenses can be found here but in general, if it's not something a Doctor would write a prescription for, its not an HSA expense. No gym memberships, no over the counter medicines, no workout supplements.

Remember, this article provides only general advice. If you would like advice specific to your situation, feel free to email or call before you act.