NASE in the News

Ten Million Americans Enrolled In Health Savings Accounts, Report Finds

According to a report recently released by America’s Health Insurance Plans (AHIP), the number of Americans covered by Health Savings Account (HSA)-eligible insurance plans has increased by 25 percent since 2009 to 10 million people in January 2010.

AHIP has conducted an annual census of health plans participating in the HSA/high-deductible health plan market since HSAs were first authorized in January 2004.

HSA plans encourage consumers to manage their own health costs by linking a tax-favored savings account used to pay medical expenses with a high-deductible health plan (HDHP) that meets certain requirements for deductibles and out-of-pocket expense limits. In addition, the funds in the HSA are owned by the individual and may be rolled over from year to year.

The report found that the number of Americans with HSA/HDHP coverage has been steadily increasing over the past few years – rising to 10 million in January 2010 from 8 million January 2009, 6.1 million in January 2008, 4.5 million in January 2007, 3.2 million in January 2006, and 1 million in March 2005.

According to AHIP, enrollment in HSA/HDHP coverage in the group market rose to 8 million in January 2010, from 6.2 million in January 2009. Nearly 5 million people were covered in the large-group market, while almost 3 million were covered in the small-group market. Additionally, individual market enrollment increased to 2.1 million people in January 2010 from 1.8 million in January 2009.

Overall, the most popular product type for HSA enrollees is preferred provider organization (PPO) products, with over 90 percent of enrollees in HSA/HDHP plans in the individual and large-group markets using PPO products, and 80 percent of HSA/HDHP enrollees using PPO plans in the small-group market.

Read the full AHIP report here.