| 1.
You must have an HSA-qualified high-deductible
health plan to open or contribute to a
health-savings account in your own name. Not all
HDHPs are HSA-approved.
2. You deposit
the savings gained because of your lower premium
into your health-savings account. The whole
point of a health-savings account is to allow
you to use that money on a tax-free basis to pay
for your health expenses up to your new, higher
deductible.
3. The money in
your HSA is your own. This means your employer
cannot tell you what to do with your money or
restrict what you can spend it on. Since it is
your money, it goes with you when you change
jobs.
4. You are in
charge of your HSA funds, making you and your
doctor the decision makers, not a third party.
Spending your own money also means you should
ask about the cost of health-care expenditures,
which may bring marketplace competition to the
world of health care.
5. There is no
time limit for when you can reimburse yourself
for your health-care expenses; you just need to
keep legible receipts and records in case you do
reimburse yourself or in case you are audited.
6. You decide
whether to spend from the account for your
medical expenses and how much to spend, or
whether to spend out-of-pocket and to save the
HSA money for the future.
7. Anyone can
contribute to another's HSA. The tax benefit
from such a contribution is gained by the person
receiving the contribution, not the person
giving the contribution.
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