Thursday, July 21, 2005
Surprise - Consumer-driven health plans require people to be consumers
[Kaja Whitehouse, "Fees of Health-Savings Accounts Draw Scrutiny of Consumers," The Wall Street Journal, 20 July 2005.]
Here's an interesting concept: not all products are created equal. The tone of this article suggests almost complete surprise upon finding out that it pays to be a savvy customer:
While some providers offer HSAs free, others charge more than $100 in the first year. Higher fees don't necessarily guarantee higher savings rates or additional services. HSAFinder.com, a site that provides free information about HSAs, said it received so many complaints about fees that it compiled a list of the top 10 least- and most-expensive HSA providers. It released the list on its Web site this week.
Here comes the good part, though:
The good news, Mr. Mazzella says, is that competition is driving down costs. More than one million people were covered under an HSA as of March, more than double the number six months earlier, according to America's Health Insurance Plans, an industry organization in Washington, D.C.
HSAFinder.com's list of the least-expensive HSA providers, based on first-year fees, include American Chartered Bank of Schaumburg, Ill.; Capitol Bank of Madison, Wis.; and Blackhawk Bancorp Inc. of Beloit, Wis.
The most costly HSA providers, also based on first-year fees, include Equity Trust Co. of Elyria, Ohio; Datapath Inc. of Little Rock, Ark.; Sterling HSA of Oakland, Calif.; Trustar Retirement Services, a unit of Principal Financial Group Inc.; and First HSA Inc. of Reading, Pa.
[Devon Herrick, "Health Insurance Is Better To Own Than Rent," The Dodge City Globe, 23 March 2005.]
[Kaja Whitehouse, "Fees of Health-Savings Accounts Draw Scrutiny of Consumers," The Wall Street Journal, 20 July 2005.]
Here's an interesting concept: not all products are created equal. The tone of this article suggests almost complete surprise upon finding out that it pays to be a savvy customer:
While some providers offer HSAs free, others charge more than $100 in the first year. Higher fees don't necessarily guarantee higher savings rates or additional services. HSAFinder.com, a site that provides free information about HSAs, said it received so many complaints about fees that it compiled a list of the top 10 least- and most-expensive HSA providers. It released the list on its Web site this week.
Here comes the good part, though:
The good news, Mr. Mazzella says, is that competition is driving down costs. More than one million people were covered under an HSA as of March, more than double the number six months earlier, according to America's Health Insurance Plans, an industry organization in Washington, D.C.
HSAFinder.com's list of the least-expensive HSA providers, based on first-year fees, include American Chartered Bank of Schaumburg, Ill.; Capitol Bank of Madison, Wis.; and Blackhawk Bancorp Inc. of Beloit, Wis.
The most costly HSA providers, also based on first-year fees, include Equity Trust Co. of Elyria, Ohio; Datapath Inc. of Little Rock, Ark.; Sterling HSA of Oakland, Calif.; Trustar Retirement Services, a unit of Principal Financial Group Inc.; and First HSA Inc. of Reading, Pa.
[Devon Herrick, "Health Insurance Is Better To Own Than Rent," The Dodge City Globe, 23 March 2005.]
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