New HSA research demonstrates HSA owners are 80 percent more likely to be saving aggressively. But only 11 percent have maxed out their contributions.
Alegeus, a SaaS platform for managing consumer-directed health plans (CDHPs), released part one of its two-part HSA research series: the 2018 Alegeus HSA Participant Profile.
The entrance of CDHPs offer a much-needed solution to control healthcare costs. The idea is to transform disengaged patients into intelligent, more informed consumers. Consumers are given more financial responsibility in hopes it will increase accountability for their healthcare spending. This approach is becoming a central strategy for many employers, and HSAs (healthcare savings accounts) are a central component to the success of CDHPs. The HSA research report lends credibility to this strategy.
According to Alegeus, HSA owners are more fluent, more engaged in decision-making, and savvier healthcare consumers than their peers:
- More fluent in health and financial concepts than their peers. HSA participants are 38 percent more confident they understand their health insurance coverage and 54 percent more confident in forecasting out-of-pocket healthcare costs.
- More focused on cost and value than their peers. HSA participants are 23 percent more likely to make cost/value-based decisions than the general population.
- Savvier spenders than their peers. HSA participants do more pre-purchase diligence; they are 46 percent more likely to research and compare costs and 37 percent more likely to seek out alternatives.
The research also demonstrates 89 percent of HSA owners claim to be healthy, and 78 percent consume primarily preventative care. This contradicts the myth that high deductible plans lead to care avoidance. According to the report, only four percent avoid care.
Despite being the savviest healthcare consumers, HSA owners still don’t get the full value from their accounts.
Only 11 percent contribute up to the maximum amount allowed by the IRS, and only 13 percent have invested their HSA savings for growth. In fact, research found 54 percent of participants didn’t know they could invest their HSA funds for growth.
The study surveyed over 1,400 U.S. healthcare users. It was commissioned to better understand how HSA participants use their accounts and engage in their healthcare compared to the general population.
