Tag: HSAs

Sterling Updates: Important Changes for 2012

We’re pleased to announce new services at Sterling Health Services Administration, as well as share reminders about important industry changes in 2012.

New Sterling Services:

  • Login Once for Access to HSA, HRA and FSA Accounts – We’ve made it easier for you to access account information online. If you have multiple accounts with Sterling, such as an HSA and HRA, or HSA and FSA, just one login at www.sterlinghsa.com now provides access to account information and transaction tools for HSAs, HRAs and FSAs. You may remember that each product required a separate login until now. At this time, COBRA account access still requires a separate login to our WebCOBRA portal. Product web guides with more details can be downloaded by clicking the buttons below.
  • Fast Account Balances Via Phone – You can get your HSA,HRA and FSA account balances anytime just by calling 800-617-4729, pressing 1 at the prompt, and entering your Sterling account number. The response to this new service has been very positive, making it easy for you to access information on funds available anytime from anywhere.

Industry Updates:

  • HSA contribution limits for 2012 increased to $3,100 for individuals and $6,250 for families, regardless of the health plan deductible. Accountholders over 55 can make a $1,000 annual catch up contribution as well.
  • For Transit and Parking FSAs, the 2012 benefit amounts are $240 per month for parking (a $10 monthly increase) and $125 per month for transit (down from $230).

If you are a Sterling Accountholder or Subscriber, download your web portal guides below:

FSA Employee Guide
HRA Employee Guide
HSA Employee Guide

If you are a Sterling Employer Client, download your web portal guides below:

FSA Employer Guide
HRA Employer Guide
HSA Employer Guide

Questions? Contact Sterling customer service by calling 800-617-4729 or emailing customer.service@sterlinghsa.com. Now through February 2012, we have extended customer service hours and are available to help you from 6 am to 8 pm PT.

No Comments by Sterling HSA on December 9, 2011
filed in Flexible Benefit Plans, Flexible Spending Accounts, For Employers, Health Reimbursement Accounts, Health Savings Accounts, Healthcare Flexible Spending Accounts, News, Our Accountholders, Transit & Parking Benefits
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New Surveys Reveal Consumers Taking Charge of their Healthcare Costs with Health Savings Accounts

Employers and consumers alike are adopting Health Savings Accounts (HSAs) as a viable way to manage their health care costs without compromising care, according to two recent national surveys.

The “2011 Employer and Account Holder Surveys,” commissioned by ACS and conducted by Buck Consultants, show a  majority of small employers (77 percent) believe that High Deductible Health Plans (HDHP) with an HSA are key in controlling health care costs.

Additionally, more than half (56 percent) of account holders have found that their HSA-qualified plan provides an affordable health care option.

The surveys show that HSAs put consumers in the driver’s seat when it comes to managing their health services and care. Three-quarters of respondents say the ability personally to control their own health costs is an “extremely” or “very” important benefit of HSAs.

Not only are account holders setting aside more money than before they had an HSA to cover potential medical costs (54 percent), but they are also engaging in healthier lifestyle choices (18 percent), researching preventive care programs (18 percent), shopping for lower priced prescription drugs (28 percent), and planning health care better throughout the year (31 percent). Individuals perceive that they consume medical services at approximately the same rate but are shopping for care more than before.

Employers and employees are benefiting from more educated, responsible health and wellness decisions, but the benefits don’t end there. HDHPs are less costly to employers for both individual and family coverage. Employers report that the cost of providing HSA-qualified plans is less than the cost of providing a standard Preferred Provider Organization (PPO). The average direct cost to provide an HDHP/HSA is $5,469 for individual coverage and $9,909 for family coverage. In comparison, the average PPO cost is $7,158 for individuals and $10,691 for family.

Other significant findings include:

2011 Employer Survey

  • The average employer that implemented an HDHP and HSA program has 49 percent of eligible employees enrolled in the HDHP.
  • Sixty-nine percent of employer respondents contributed to their employees’ HSA accounts.
  • Employers’ contributions to HSAs average $1,000 for individual coverage and $1,500 for family coverage.

2011 Account Holder Survey

  • Seventy-two percent of account holders indicated that they actively chose the HSA-qualified plan although other plan options exist for them.
  • Eighty-two percent of account holders surveyed reported that the ability to save tax-free money was “extremely” or “very” important in selecting an HSA-qualified plan.
  • Seventy-nine percent of respondents state that having an HSA is valuable to them.
  • Sixty-four percent of respondents state that their HDHP/HSA combination meets their family’s needs.

These surveys, commissioned in the fall of this year by ACS and conducted by Buck Consultants, both of which are Xerox companies, generated more than 14,000 existing account holder and 300 employer responses. The surveys are the largest ever conducted on the subject of HDHPs and HSAs.

For more information on Health Savings Accounts, visit our website or contact a Sterling sales representative today.

No Comments by Sterling HSA on November 18, 2011
filed in Consumer Directed Health Plans, Health Savings Accounts, News
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For Producer Partners: New Reduced Rates on HSAs

Not All Healthcare Costs Are Rising. Check Out Sterling HSA’s Reduced Fees!

We all know that healthcare costs are climbing year after year. And we know that engaging employees in financing costs through consumer directed plans like health savings accounts (HSAs) incents them to make cost conscious choices.

So at Sterling Health Services Administration, we want to make it more affordable for employers to adopt HSAs and reduce their costs by reducing ours!

Effective September 1, 2011, your clients can enroll their employees in an HSA with Sterling at the following new rates:

Online Group Enrollment: $15 (down from $28)
Paper Group Enrollment: $25 (down from $35)
Online Individual Enrollment: $5 (down from $15)
Paper Individual Enrollment: $15 (down from $35)

Even better, fees can be negotiated for health plan partners, large group accounts and rollover HSA accounts.

Contact us today to learn more and schedule enrollment meetings with your clients soon. What better way to beat the rising cost of healthcare than by lowering our prices?

No Comments by Sterling HSA on August 17, 2011
filed in For Producer Partners, Health Savings Accounts
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11.4 Million Covered by HSAs

AHIP has released the latest update of its annual census of the market for health savings accounts (HSAs).  As of January 2011, more than 11.4 million Americans were covered by HSA-eligible high deductible health plans (HDHPs), an increase of more than 14 percent from the prior year.

Health Savings Account Enrollment Reaches 11.4 Million

Washington, DC – More than 11.4 million Americans are covered by Health Savings Account (HSA)-eligible insurance plans, a more than 14 percent increase since last year, according to a new census by America’s Health Insurance Plans (AHIP).

Health Savings Accounts were authorized starting in January 2004.  Since then, AHIP has conducted an annual census of health plans participating in the HSA health plan market. This year’s census shows that enrollment in HSA plans has nearly doubled over the last three years, from 6.1 million enrollees in January 2008 to 11.4 million in January 2011.

“HSA plans continue to be a vital source of affordable coverage for millions of families and employers across the country,” said Karen Ignagni, President and CEO of AHIP.

Key findings from the census include:

  • As of January 2011, approximately 11.4 million people were covered by HSA plans, an increase of more than 14 percent since last year.
  • Between January 2010 and January 2011, the fastest growing market for HSA plans was for large-group coverage, which rose by 26 percent, followed by individual market coverage, which grew by 15 percent.
  • In the individual market, 2.4 million covered lives are enrolled in HSA plans, while approximately 2.8 million lives were enrolled in HSA coverage in the small-group market and over 6.3 million lives were covered in the large-group market.
  • States with the highest levels of HSA enrollment were California (1,073,319 enrollees), Texas (844,832 enrollees), Ohio (728,868 enrollees), Illinois (690,509 enrollees), Florida (656,243 enrollees) and Minnesota (507,307 enrollees).

AHIP is reaching out to policymakers on both sides of the aisle about ways to mitigate the potential unintended consequences of provisions in the new health care reform law that could disrupt or limit the availability of coverage through HSA plans, including:

  • Restrictions on Over-the-Counter Medications: Starting this year, HSA funds can no longer be used to purchase over-the-counter (OTC) medications without a prescription.  This requirement reduces consumers’ access to common OTC drugs, such as allergy medications, and instead provides an incentive to use higher-cost prescription drug alternatives.
  • Medical Loss Ratio: The medical loss ratio (MLR) regulation is particularly problematic for HSA-eligible plans.  By Congressional design, these plans are intended to provide consumers with a high-deductible, low-premium coverage option along with the ability so save for health care expenses through an HSA.  While these plans typically have lower benefit costs, they are not necessarily less costly to administer on a per-enrollee basis, and, as a result, naturally have lower loss ratios.  Policymakers should recognize the unique nature of HSA plans to preserve consumers’ access to this important coverage option.
  • Minimum Actuarial Value Requirement: Effective in 2014, insurance coverage sold in the individual and small-group markets must meet certain minimum actuarial values for each level of coverage provided: bronze, silver, gold, and platinum.  The lowest level, bronze, must have a minimum 60 percent actuarial value, which is the dollar value of the average expected benefits paid out by the plan.  The ACA directs the HHS Secretary to establish the process for determining actuarial values and states that the Secretary “may” include the amount of the annual employer HSA contributions toward the actuarial value calculation.  Including employer HSA contributions in the actuarial value calculation significantly increases the likelihood that HSA plans will meet the minimum requirement and will help ensure consumers continue to have access to the high-quality, affordable coverage they rely on today.

For the full report and slides, please visit the links below:
Full Report: http://www.ahipresearch.org/pdfs/HSA2011.pdf
Slides: http://www.ahipresearch.org/pdfs/HSA2011-slides.pdf

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For more information on Health Savings Accounts or Sterling Health Services Administration, visit our website or contact us at 877.617.4729.

Note: This press release originally appears here.

No Comments by Sterling HSA on June 29, 2011
filed in For Producer Partners, Health Savings Accounts, Healthcare Reform
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