You Can Reduce Your Familiy Health Insurance and Health Care Bills
[8/10/07]
With healthcare and health insurance costs at an all time high nationwide finding more affordable medical insurance isn’t the only way to reduce your family’s healthcare costs. Here are few valuable tips on how to be frugal without skimping on care when it comes to medical spending.
Open a Medical FSA, or Flexible Spending Account. AN FSA is very similar to an HSA (Health Savings Account) in that it allows you to put aside money in pre-tax dollars to pay for medical expenses. However unlike an HSA, an FSA does not have to be coupled with a consumer driven high deductible health plan. Also the funds within a medical FSA can often be used for a broader range of medical expenses than an HSA. Depending on the tax bracket you fall into a medical FSA can save you as much as 15- 30% on your healthcare spending. Unlike an HSA the funds placed in an FSA do not rollover and build toward a retirement annuity. The funds deposited in an FSA must be used within the benefit year, and funds not used will not be returned to you, so you must plan your anticipated expenses carefully. Still since a Flexible Spending Account allows you to pay for qualified medical expenses with pretax dollars, they can result in significant savings on medical bills you will have to be paying anyway. Learn more about FSA’s at https://www.fsafeds.com/fsafeds/index.asp. A full list of the covered expenses for which you can use your FSA can be found by logging on to the IRS website keyword FSA or Publication 502.
Speaking of HSA’s if you are young and healthy, they are the way to go. If the option is available for you to take a consumer driven high deductible health insurance plan, and couple it with a qualifying HSA. You will achieve similar pretax savings to an FSA, and you will significantly lower the cost of your health insurance premium while also building a retirement fund like a traditional IRA.
If you are between jobs or have chosen early retirement before eligibility for Medicare, think about short term health insurance. A short term or gap insurance policy is a great way to save on medical insurance until Medicare kicks in or you have access to low-cost employer based group health insurance benefits. Short term health insurance policies carry significantly cheaper health insurance premiums than continuing your employer based benefits through COBRA.
And finally if you want to reduce your healthcare costs do not be afraid to ask for discounts from your healthcare providers. Many people pay to enroll in so-called Medical Discount Plans, and fail to realize that they usually can obtain the same discounts from participating practitioners simply by asking for them. Also do not be afraid to take advantage of any and all low or no cost healthcare facilities in your area. These would include having dental work done at a dental school, using nurse practitioners and Physicians’ Assistants for routine care and treatment, and going to free clinics.
Open a Medical FSA, or Flexible Spending Account. AN FSA is very similar to an HSA (Health Savings Account) in that it allows you to put aside money in pre-tax dollars to pay for medical expenses. However unlike an HSA, an FSA does not have to be coupled with a consumer driven high deductible health plan. Also the funds within a medical FSA can often be used for a broader range of medical expenses than an HSA. Depending on the tax bracket you fall into a medical FSA can save you as much as 15- 30% on your healthcare spending. Unlike an HSA the funds placed in an FSA do not rollover and build toward a retirement annuity. The funds deposited in an FSA must be used within the benefit year, and funds not used will not be returned to you, so you must plan your anticipated expenses carefully. Still since a Flexible Spending Account allows you to pay for qualified medical expenses with pretax dollars, they can result in significant savings on medical bills you will have to be paying anyway. Learn more about FSA’s at https://www.fsafeds.com/fsafeds/index.asp. A full list of the covered expenses for which you can use your FSA can be found by logging on to the IRS website keyword FSA or Publication 502.
Speaking of HSA’s if you are young and healthy, they are the way to go. If the option is available for you to take a consumer driven high deductible health insurance plan, and couple it with a qualifying HSA. You will achieve similar pretax savings to an FSA, and you will significantly lower the cost of your health insurance premium while also building a retirement fund like a traditional IRA.
If you are between jobs or have chosen early retirement before eligibility for Medicare, think about short term health insurance. A short term or gap insurance policy is a great way to save on medical insurance until Medicare kicks in or you have access to low-cost employer based group health insurance benefits. Short term health insurance policies carry significantly cheaper health insurance premiums than continuing your employer based benefits through COBRA.
And finally if you want to reduce your healthcare costs do not be afraid to ask for discounts from your healthcare providers. Many people pay to enroll in so-called Medical Discount Plans, and fail to realize that they usually can obtain the same discounts from participating practitioners simply by asking for them. Also do not be afraid to take advantage of any and all low or no cost healthcare facilities in your area. These would include having dental work done at a dental school, using nurse practitioners and Physicians’ Assistants for routine care and treatment, and going to free clinics.
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