HSAs: Sell the value of the insurance first

I was recently asked by a broker I work with to help her with an enrollment meeting. The group had two options available to employees – a traditional PPO plan and an HSA-compatible plan – and I was asked to explain how the HSA worked and answer any questions that might come up.

Unfortunately, the employer had decided to pay the full price for both of the plans and had chosen to pocket the savings from the HSA plan rather than deposit it in the employees’ accounts. This makes the HSA option much less attractive for employees since there is no premium savings to pay for up-front expenses like doctor visits and prescriptions. So instead of talking about the benefits of a health savings account, I decided instead to talk about the value of the insurance.