An HSA, or Health Savings Account, is a special type of tax-advantaged savings account designed to help you pay for out-of-pocket medical expenses when you have a high-deductible health plan, or HDHP. In addition to being a smart way to pay for medical expenses like your deductible, copays, and coinsurance, HSAs are increasingly being used as part of a retirement-planning strategy.

However, because of the tax-advantages, there are lots of rules about who is allowed to start an HSA, who can contribute money to an HSA, and what that money can be used for. If you don’t follow the rules, you’ll lose the tax advantages and owe additional penalties.

How Does an HSA Lower My Taxes?

If you manage your HSA correctly and follow all of the IRS rules, your HSA money is:

• Not taxed when you earn it and put it into the HSA.
• Not taxed as it grows.
• Not taxed when you take it out of the HSA to pay for medical expenses.

Here’s how it works. The money you put into your HSA is tax-deductible. If your employer contributes to your HSA, that money isn’t counted as income so you’re not paying taxes on it, either.

Interest and investment earnings in your HSA grow tax-deferred like they do in an IRA. Since you’re not paying income taxes each year on the interest, you keep more of that interest in the account, and the account grows faster.

If you take money out of your HSA to pay for qualified medical expenses, you don’t have to pay income taxes on it. However, if you take money out of your HSA but don’t use it for medical expenses, you’ll have to pay income taxes on it plus a 20 percent penalty (this used to be 10 percent, but the Affordable Care Act increased it to 20 percent).

After you turn 65 years old, the rules are a little different. If you’re on Medicare, you can’t contribute to your HSA anymore. However, you can still use the money you’ve saved in your HSA. Unlike before you turned 65, you can spend your HSA money on anything you want and you won’t have the 20% penalty. However, you’ll have to pay income taxes on HSA withdrawals not used for medical expenses. If you take money out of your HSA and use it for qualified medical expenses, you don’t pay regular income taxes on it; it’s totally tax-free.

Who’s Eligible for an HSA?

You’re eligible to start and contribute to an HSA if you meet all of these requirements:

1. You’re covered by a qualified HDHP (this means a high deductible health plan that meets the deductible and out-of-pocket requirements established by the IRS for HSA-qualified plans, and that doesn’t cover anything besides preventive care before the deductible is met—ie, you’ll pay the full cost of office visits, rather than just a copay, until you’ve met your deductible).
2. You don’t have additional, more traditional, health insurance coverage.
3. You aren’t on Medicare.
4. Nobody else can claim you as a dependent on their tax return.
5. You don’t have a general purpose flexible spending account (FSA) or health reimbursement account (HRA). You can have a limited purpose FSA or HRA, a post-deductible FSA or HRA, a retirement HRA, or suspended HRA (see page 4 of IRS Publication 969).

How Does Money Get Into the HSA?

You can contribute money to your HSA yourself, your employer may contribute money to your HSA, or another person may contribute money to your HSA. However, the total yearly contributions to your HSA are limited. The limits change each year and vary based on your age and whether you have self-only HDHP coverage or family coverage.

If your HDHP health insurance coverage is through your job, your employer might make contributions to your HSA. Additionally, many employers set up payroll deductions so you can easily contribute a portion of each paycheck directly into your HSA. When HSA contributions are made this way, you avoid both income tax and payroll tax (FICA), whereas non-payroll contributions to an HSA are only deductible for income tax purposes (you deduct them on your tax return in that case).

If your health insurance isn’t through your job, your employer probably won’t be involved. In this case, most people make automatic monthly contributions to their HSA. However, your financial institution will also allow you to make a lump-sum contribution to your HSA if you prefer that approach.

Your HSA funds need to be with an HSA custodian, which can be a bank, credit union, insurance company, or brokerage. The option to have your money in a brokerage account means that it can be invested in the stock market if that’s your choice, earning investment returns rather than simple interest (investments are subject to risk, which is why some people prefer the lower returns—and lower risk—that go along with keeping HSA funds in a bank or credit union).

You may be able to fund your HSA with a distribution from your traditional or Roth IRA. The distribution must be made directly by the trustee of the IRA to the trustee of the HSA and is only allowed once in your lifetime. Learn more about this from IRS publication 969 or your financial advisor.

As with your IRA, you may contribute to your HSA through April 15^th of the following year (or the tax filing deadline for that year, if it’s shifted slightly from April 15). For example, if you have HDHP coverage in 2019 but don’t max-out your 2019 HSA contributions by the end of the year, you may make an additional 2019 contribution as you’re preparing your taxes on April 15, 2020.

What Can I Spend HSA Money On?

The money in your HSA is yours. You can spend it on whatever you wish. However, if you want to avoid paying income taxes and penalties on it, you’ll only take a distribution from your HSA to pay for eligible medical expenses.

Eligible medical expenses include medical expenses your health insurance doesn’t pay for, but that are eligible to be taken as a deduction on your federal income taxes (if you use money from your HSA to pay these expenses, however, you cannot deduct them on your tax return, since that would be double-dipping). See the entire list in IRS Publication 502, but here’s a synopsis:

• Your health insurance deductible, copayments, and coinsurance.
• Prescription medications. Over the counter medicine like Tylenol isn’t eligible unless you have a prescription for it. Medical marijuana isn’t eligible even if you have a prescription and are in a state where it’s been legalized.
• Dental expenses like teeth cleanings, preventive care, and fillings. However, purely cosmetic dentistry like teeth whitening isn’t eligible.
• Eye exams, vision correction surgery, glasses, contact lenses, and contact lens supplies as long as the glasses or contacts are used for medical reasons like vision correction.
• Breastfeeding supplies.
• Diabetic supplies.
• In vitro fertilization expenses.
• Alternative medical care your health insurance may not cover such as acupuncture treatments, chiropractic care, and medical care provided by a Christian Science practitioner.
• The premium is for COBRA continuation of your health insurance, your spouse’s health insurance, or your dependents’ health insurance.
• The premium is for long-term care insurance (subject to limits.)

• The premium is for health insurance while you’re receiving government unemployment compensation.
• If you’re 65 or older, the premium for Medicare Parts A, B, and D, or Medicare Advantage. However, Medicare supplement insurance (Medigap) isn’t an eligible expense.

Even though your HSA is technically an individual account, you may use it to pay for the eligible medical expenses of your spouse and your tax dependents, also.

Cosmo Insurance Agency is an independent insurance agency serving surrounding communities in New Jersey. Cosmo keeps its promise to assure an efficient and creative approach to the services we offer. Each of our clients experience a personalized and long-term relationship with us. Our New Jersey based team of health brokers guides our clients in helping them choose the most cost-effective options. By incorporating the latest in technology-based tools and laws on healthcare, employee benefits, life insurance and finance, we keep our clients up-to-date with the plans that encompass all of their needs, whether it is individual or group insurance. 

CONTACT COSMO NOW

GET A HEALTH INSURANCE QUOTE NOW

LEARN MORE ABOUT HEALTH INSURANCE

GET A DENTAL INSURANCE QUOTE