With 49 percent of employers expected to offer only high deductible health plans in the future, according to a recent Prudential study on employee benefits, it is no surprise that we have begun to see strong interest from our health plan clients for out-of-the-box integration with Flexible Spending Accounts (FSAs) and Health Savings Accounts (HSAs). The Prudential data overwhelmingly shows a sharp rise in the use of health savings accounts, indicating that not only are they here to stay, they will become ubiquitous. Today, HSA penetration in the under 65 privately insured population is 10 percent. But the rate of growth since the introduction of HSAs 11 years ago is staggering. There were 17.4 million HSA members in 2014 (up from 8 million in 2009, ie. 18 percent CAGR). That number is expected to grow to 50 million in 2020 (again 18 percent CAGR) due to rising costs, the advent of exchanges and the Cadillac tax imposed on employers in 2018.
Since Congress authorized HSA plans in 2004, America’s Health Insurance Plans (AHIP) has conducted an annual census of the number of people covered by HSAs and high-deductible health plans (HDHPs). An infographic summarizing the results of the 2014 census is below:
For health insurers looking to gain market share, offering a high-deductible plan paired with an HSA is a winning strategy. This is why we are so excited about our partnership with HealthEquity, one of the nation’s oldest and largest dedicated health savings custodians. Through our partnership, we will be able to provide personal health accounts on our private exchange platform. High-deductible health plans paired with personal spending accounts are increasingly becoming the norm. It is therefore only natural that private exchanges, which allow consumers to shop and enroll in health plans while seamlessly providing robust decision support, are a perfect home for HSAs.
