Learn how to Use an HSA to Pay Medical Payments

You probably have a well being financial savings account however not sufficient cash to cowl your medical bills, you aren’t essentially doomed to insurmountable debt — even for those who owe on outdated medical payments.

Alexandra Wilson, a Licensed Monetary Planner in Atlanta, used her HSA contributions one 12 months to cowl medical payments she incurred the earlier 12 months when she gave beginning to her daughter.

She had front-loaded her HSA in anticipation of her daughter’s arrival. However as so many new mother and father uncover, Wilson ended up making extra visits to her pediatrician post-delivery.

As an alternative of racking up debt or digging into her common financial savings, she elevated her HSA contributions and used that cash to repay the payments.

“You’re saving cash since you’re not having to pay taxes on that cash,” Wilson stated.

Wish to know how one can begin paying down outdated medical debt along with your HSA? Learn on.

Learn how to Use an HSA to Pay Off Medical Debt

Cash that you just put into an HSA is yours to maintain — in contrast to a versatile spending account, which has a use-it-or-lose-it annual requirement.

For those who (or your employer) have contributed to your HSA, you could have some financial savings constructed up. Right here’s the right way to know if you should utilize that cash to repay outdated medical debt.

If You At the moment Have an HSA

Utilizing your HSA to repay outdated medical debt depends upon the reply to 1 query: Did you incur the debt earlier than you arrange your HSA?

If the reply is “sure,” you can not use the HSA.

If the reply was “no,” you’ll be able to.

Let’s say you’ve been contributing $100 a month to your HSA for one 12 months. You could have $1,200 within the account whenever you break your arm and go to the emergency room.

You find yourself getting a invoice for $2,000, which is $800 greater than you could have in your account. Don’t panic.

You should utilize the $1,200 you’ve already saved to pay a part of your invoice, then use your common $100 contributions to the HSA to make month-to-month funds in your invoice for the following eight months — the excellent news is that the majority healthcare suppliers will comply with cost plans.

With older debt, it won’t be so simple as a swipe of your HSA card, significantly for those who initially paid the invoice utilizing a bank card.

Chances are you’ll have to name your HSA supplier and supply receipts to get approval. Assuming you do get approval, you’d primarily be reimbursing your self out of your HSA.

You’ll should report all HSA distributions on tax kind 1099-SA whenever you file your tax return. However as long as you used the cash for medical bills, these distributions should not taxable.

If You Had an HSA within the Previous

Let’s say you used to work for an employer that supplied you a high-deductible well being care plan and also you added cash to the HSA. You then received a brand new job (or switched plans), and also you signed up for medical health insurance that wasn’t excessive deductible. What occurs to your HSA?

“You possibly can nonetheless proceed to make use of your HSA — you simply can’t contribute to it whilst you don’t have a excessive deductible well being plan,” Wilson stated.

Meaning you should utilize financial savings from an outdated HSA to pay for this 12 months’s medical bills or different outdated medical debt, as long as you incurred that expense after you opened the HSA.

And what occurs to the cash you don’t use?

That account is sweet perpetually and can be utilized to pay for future medical bills. When you flip 65, you should utilize cash in your HSA for non-medical bills. You’ll pay earnings taxes on the non-medical withdrawals, as you’ll with a 401(ok).

Nevertheless, for those who depart your present employer or change well being plans, your HSA could cost you a month-to-month administrative payment. Charges differ by plan however are usually $5 monthly or much less. They’re often waived in case your HSA steadiness is above a certain quantity (usually $1,000 to $5,000).

For those who meet the plan’s minimal financial savings threshold, you’ll have the choice to take a position the cash in your HSA so the funds in your account can develop.

Which signifies that HSA may assist hold you bodily — and fiscally — wholesome for a very long time.

Tiffany Wendeln Connors is deputy editor at The Penny Hoarder.

Rachel Christian, a Licensed Educator in Private Finance and a senior author for The Penny Hoarder, additionally contributed.