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Health Savings Accounts
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Friday, November 21, 2008
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Individual Choices for Individual Healthcare
By establishing a Health Savings Account (HSA) - in conjunction with a high-deductible health plan - you're
taking healthcare savings back into your own hands. A Health Savings Account
offers the following benefits:
Tax-Free Benefits
HSAs not only allow you to make contributions and earn interest tax free, but your
distributions are also tax free as long as they're used for qualified medical expenses.
Flexibility in Spending
Your Health Savings Account may
help you pay for any qualified medical expense - from health insurance deductibles and co-payments to
certain over-the-counter medications and out-of-pocket expenses.
Year-to-Year Savings
You've heard the phrase,
"Use it or lose it." Well, HSA isn't like that at all. Your HSA balance will roll over
from year to year, allowing you to budget for your health expenses and build up your savings to cover
qualified medical expenses when the need arises.
Individual Ownership
An HSA is owned by each individual, not
their employer. So, it doesn't matter which job you have, whether or not your employer makes
contributions, or if you are moving to a new job - your HSA will always be with you.
Contribution Options
Although this is an individual account and goes with you from career to
career, your employer may choose to make contributions to employee
Health Savings Account as an added benefit to you.
Yearly contributions are limited to the high-deductible health plan's
annual deductible, subject to a cap of $2,900 for individuals and $5,800
for families; but individuals age 55-64 can make additional yearly
contributions to help save for the future.
How Health Savings Accounts compare
with other medical savings plans...
| Who is eligible? |
Individuals covered under a qualified high- deductible health
plan (HDHP) |
Self-employed and small business owners |
Any employee subject to employer- designated exclusions |
| Are unused amounts carried over to the next year? |
Yes |
Yes |
No |
| Are earnings withdrawn tax free? |
Yes* |
Yes* |
N/A |
| What is/are the contribution source(s)? |
Individual and/or employer |
Individual or employer |
Indivudal Only |
| Is there a catch-up contribution provision? |
Yes |
No |
No |
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*For qualified withdrawals
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Sign Up Today...
Get started today
by downloading the PNB HSA form. Click the link below, and when the form opens in your web browser, click your browser's
Print button. Fill out the printed version and bring it in to your local PNB location.
Download the HSA Form