5/28/2015 – Health savings accounts gain acceptance as retirement tool (Market Watch)

At the end of 2014, U.S. health savings accounts (HSAs) held $24.2 billion across nearly 14 million accounts, versus $19.3 billion across nearly 11 million accounts in 2013, according to Devenir, a Minneapolis-based provider of HSA investment products. Underlying this rapid growth is the increased adoption by employers of high-deductible health insurance plans, which shift more medical costs to employees and are typically paired with HSAs. Outside the employer market, Obamacare marketplaces offer individual and family high-deductible plans that are HSA-eligible.

Under high-deductible plans, consumers must pay for most medical expenses out-of-pocket until their spending hits a deductible of at least $1,300 for individual coverage or $2,600 for family coverage. To fund these expenses, consumers can sock away money in their HSA, which is a dedicated, tax-advantaged account for medical needs.

Read the full article at MarketWatch.com.