[Kay]

Hi everyone, I just started employment at a different company, and I’m trying to decide on a benefits package. Could I get some input on what you would choose?

I’m a fairly healthy (by this I mean active and not on prescription meds but occasionally have a stress- or immune-related health issue) single 30 yo with no legal dependents.

I probably go to the doctor three times per year on average. The HSA seems like the obvious choice – what am I missing?

In what cases would an HRA or high deductible plan make more sense?

Options are below:
1. Consumer-Driven Health Plan + HRA; annual deductible is $2,000; annual company contribution is $800; out of pocket max is $3,200; monthly premium is $1,242

2. Consumer-Driven Health Plan + HSA; annual deductible is $1,600; annual company contribution is $800; out of pocket max is $3,200; monthly premium is $1,107

3. High Deductible Basic Plan; annual deductible is $5,000; no company contribution out of pocket max is $6,000; monthly premium is $768

[Angelo]

Usually you can’t contribute to an HSA if you don’t have a high deductible plan

[Erica]

This seems fishy to me, but if you’re sure this info is correct, the HSA eligible plan is the clear winner.

[Rick]

Another request for premiums. And also consider adding “hsa eligible” for the plans given that in that name or description.

[Joel]

Assuming plan #3 is also an HSA eligible HDHP, just with a higher deductible and MOOP and no employer HSA contribution, then if these plans otherwise are the same you can do a fairly simple numerical analysis to figure out which one makes the most sense.

The difference between the premiums for #2 & #3 is $339/month or $4,068/year favoring #3. $800 of those premiums for #2 go toward your HSA contribution, making the difference $3,268/year.

Now we look at the additional (potential) costs for the plan. Plan #2 has a MOOP of $3,200 while plan #3 has a MOOP of $6,000, for a difference of $2,800.

Plan #2 has a deductible of $1,600 and plan #3 has a deductible of $5,000 for a difference of $3,400.

These differences suggest that plan #3 is the better choice unless you use up between $4,800 and $5,000 of your deductible. Anything less than $4,800 in medical expenses and plan #3 wins. Under the worst case scenario financial scenario plan #2 saves you $200 over plan #3.

If you spend more than $5,000 on medical expenses, plan #3 will eventually pull out ahead again. How quickly depends on information you didn’t provide.

If the assumptions I initially mentioned hold true and you really are in pretty good health, I’d probably opt for plan #3, especially if you can make contributions to an HSA through payroll as well.

Plan #3 would likely leave you with more money in your pocket at the end of the year.

If you have no healthcare incidents, the savings could be on the order of $3K.

Plan #2 would need to provide significant (usable) benefits that you don’t mention to change my conclusion.

[Author]

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