With the turning of the calendar year a small but important revolution in healthcare has taken place without any help from professional politicians, government health agencies, or media blabbermouths. It has occurred as a significant number of businesses switch from traditional comprehensive health plans to leaner and meaner health savings accounts.
What's more important is that while presidential candidates were proposing complicated and far-reaching healthcare reform many doctors, insurance agents,HR departments and insurance companies had already discovered and started implementing what could well be the solution to America's healthcare affordability woes. Those individuals and organizations have been quietly taking advantage of a remarkably simple and affordable health insurance combination that came into existence in 2003 - a high deductible health plan (HDHP) combined with a health savings account (HSA).
Once understood, anybody who currently purchases health insurance for themselves or others will immediately see the great value of this combination as compared to overpriced comprehensive insurance. Simple economics is why this quiet revolution has begun, starting with the first people to be exposed to it, self-employed doctors and insurance agents, and now rapidly spreading throughout the business community.
When you combine HDHP and HSA small businesses and large corporations have a new affordable option to offer their employees for health protection. While many do not have an employer provided health insurance option, HDHP HSA option gives those who are self-employed and affordable way to secure themselves against catastrophic injury and illness. This option even can be used by the government for a new system which would distribute health care costs, without hassle and bloated bureaucracies for regulating, pricing, and policing each aspect of healthcare.
Here's how it works: An HDHP is a health insurance policy that begins paying for medical costs after a high deductible has been met. The Haida Dr. bull is a starting point, about $1100 and going up from there depending on the price you or your employer are willing to pay for the coverage. This makes the HDHP option more like true insurance as it will typically only be used for catastrophic illnesses or injuries and not for routine health care.
Avoiding a complete takeover of the healthcare industry by the government can be done with the use of HDHPs and HSA. It would eliminate managed-care and comprehensive medical insurance, taking with it the tremendous challenges and has brought to our nationwith its massive insurance bureaucracies, complicated insurance plans, skyrocketing health care costs, and restrictions on both patients and doctors. Doctors, hospitals, and pharmacies would all compete for healthcare dollars that the patients themselves control, freed from artificial price inflation and extra payroll costs caused by comprehensive insurance. The complexity of modern health insurance would be replaced with a nearly unimaginable return to simplicity.
As an example, a company that is currently providing comprehensive health coverage to one of its employees for $600 per month could stop providing comprehensive health coverage and instead provide an HDHP for perhaps $200 per Month. The additional $400 being saved could, if the company decided, be put directly into that employee's HSA. Now that employee accumulates $400 every month to use on more frequent medical expenses or to save for future deductibles while having the protection of an HDHP in case of catastrophe. A small business, which could never afford $600 per employee per month for comprehensive health coverage, could instead offer an HDHP by itself and may also contribute a small amount per month towards the HSA, thereby offering medical benefits where it couldn't before and expanding the number of people who are insured. That money will always belong to the employee for their lifetime or until they spend it, and the employee would always decide what doctors, what procedures, and what medicines they spend it on. The same scenario could apply to government health programs as well.
A great example is: a company is providing comprehensive health coverage for one of its employees at $600 per month would be able to stop providing this coverage, and offer an HDHP for around $200 per month. The $400 savings could be put into the employees HSA. The $400 is now available for more regular health-care costs and can be saved up for future deductibles and provides the protection of a HDHP, should something catastrophic occur. a small business who couldn't afford the $600 could now offer its employees the HDHP and may even be able to contribute to the HS a, thereby offering medical benefits where it cannot today. This expands the number of people who can now afford health care coverage. Employees would always decide what doctors to see, what procedures to have, and what medicines they spend the money on. This same scenario would make a great option for the government as well.
For more information about HSAs goto http://www.ustreas.gov/offices/public-affairs/hsa/faq.shtml
What's more important is that while presidential candidates were proposing complicated and far-reaching healthcare reform many doctors, insurance agents,HR departments and insurance companies had already discovered and started implementing what could well be the solution to America's healthcare affordability woes. Those individuals and organizations have been quietly taking advantage of a remarkably simple and affordable health insurance combination that came into existence in 2003 - a high deductible health plan (HDHP) combined with a health savings account (HSA).
Once understood, anybody who currently purchases health insurance for themselves or others will immediately see the great value of this combination as compared to overpriced comprehensive insurance. Simple economics is why this quiet revolution has begun, starting with the first people to be exposed to it, self-employed doctors and insurance agents, and now rapidly spreading throughout the business community.
When you combine HDHP and HSA small businesses and large corporations have a new affordable option to offer their employees for health protection. While many do not have an employer provided health insurance option, HDHP HSA option gives those who are self-employed and affordable way to secure themselves against catastrophic injury and illness. This option even can be used by the government for a new system which would distribute health care costs, without hassle and bloated bureaucracies for regulating, pricing, and policing each aspect of healthcare.
Here's how it works: An HDHP is a health insurance policy that begins paying for medical costs after a high deductible has been met. The Haida Dr. bull is a starting point, about $1100 and going up from there depending on the price you or your employer are willing to pay for the coverage. This makes the HDHP option more like true insurance as it will typically only be used for catastrophic illnesses or injuries and not for routine health care.
Avoiding a complete takeover of the healthcare industry by the government can be done with the use of HDHPs and HSA. It would eliminate managed-care and comprehensive medical insurance, taking with it the tremendous challenges and has brought to our nationwith its massive insurance bureaucracies, complicated insurance plans, skyrocketing health care costs, and restrictions on both patients and doctors. Doctors, hospitals, and pharmacies would all compete for healthcare dollars that the patients themselves control, freed from artificial price inflation and extra payroll costs caused by comprehensive insurance. The complexity of modern health insurance would be replaced with a nearly unimaginable return to simplicity.
As an example, a company that is currently providing comprehensive health coverage to one of its employees for $600 per month could stop providing comprehensive health coverage and instead provide an HDHP for perhaps $200 per Month. The additional $400 being saved could, if the company decided, be put directly into that employee's HSA. Now that employee accumulates $400 every month to use on more frequent medical expenses or to save for future deductibles while having the protection of an HDHP in case of catastrophe. A small business, which could never afford $600 per employee per month for comprehensive health coverage, could instead offer an HDHP by itself and may also contribute a small amount per month towards the HSA, thereby offering medical benefits where it couldn't before and expanding the number of people who are insured. That money will always belong to the employee for their lifetime or until they spend it, and the employee would always decide what doctors, what procedures, and what medicines they spend it on. The same scenario could apply to government health programs as well.
A great example is: a company is providing comprehensive health coverage for one of its employees at $600 per month would be able to stop providing this coverage, and offer an HDHP for around $200 per month. The $400 savings could be put into the employees HSA. The $400 is now available for more regular health-care costs and can be saved up for future deductibles and provides the protection of a HDHP, should something catastrophic occur. a small business who couldn't afford the $600 could now offer its employees the HDHP and may even be able to contribute to the HS a, thereby offering medical benefits where it cannot today. This expands the number of people who can now afford health care coverage. Employees would always decide what doctors to see, what procedures to have, and what medicines they spend the money on. This same scenario would make a great option for the government as well.
For more information about HSAs goto http://www.ustreas.gov/offices/public-affairs/hsa/faq.shtml
About the Author:
Dr. Eric Stamper, O.D. is a Hendersonville, Tn Optometrist and owns Visionary Eyecare Center. Dr. Eric Stamper received his optometry degree in May of 2007 from Southern College of Optometry in Memphis, where he graduated with honors in the top 10 percent of his class.
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