Health savings accounts are going mainstream. According to the 2010 Consumer Benchmark Survey, over 76 percent of respondents had an HSA-compatible health care plan. Of those, nearly 85 percent also had an HSA.
The accounts were most popular among people paying for their own coverage. Half of respondents covered on an individual plan had an HSA, while 42.7 percent of those covering between two and four people had one. More than 57 percent of people with an HSA or an HSA-compatible plan are over 45.
Respondents in both HSA-compatible plans and traditional plans share similar health and income distributions. Over 94 percent of respondents in HSA-compatible plans said they were in average or better health, compared with 93 percent of those in traditional plans. Forty-five percent of people in traditional plans reported annual household income between $25,000 and $74,000, compared with 44 percent of those with HSA-plans.
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While HSAs are touted as one of the major players in the game to get consumers more engaged in their health care, the survey found that the majority of respondents, regardless of what type of health plan they have, aren't asking about costs prior to treatment. Those in an HSA-compatible plan are slightly more likely to ask (25.1 percent) than those in a traditional plan (23 percent). However, the percentage of HSA-compatible plan holders who are actively engaged in the cost of their health care increased more than 2 percent over last year's survey.
The survey did find that those with an HSA-compatible plan were more likely to delay treatment due to cost, than those with a traditional plan. Nearly 28 percent of respondents with a traditional plan said they delay treatment because it's too expensive, but 33.4 percent of respondents with an HSA-compatible plan said the same.
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