Page 21 - Kiplinger's Personal Finance - November 2018

MONEY SPECIAL REPORT

EMPLOYER his health insurance options were little more out of pocket when we use
fewer than in years past. Still, the plan
the coverage,” he says.
he chose through his job as a sales An added benefit of choosing a high-
COVERAGE
director for a clothing retailer is hun- deductible plan is that it usually makes
Most people get their health insurance dreds of dollars less each month than you eligible to contribute to a health
through their employer, and even the coverage available to his wife, savings account. An HSA provides
though the options are usually better Emilie, through her job as a teacher a triple tax benefit, and you can use
and the premiums more stable than at a small school for children with HSA money to pay medical expenses
for people who buy their own cover- autism. Under the new plan, Cameron at any time—you can even build up a
age, their premiums and deductibles pays about $500 a month in premiums tax-free stash of savings in the account
have been rising steadily. But if you for a policy that covers him, Emilie to cover health care costs in retire-
follow a few simple strategies, you may
be able to increase your coverage and
decrease your costs. ■ CAMERON PHILLIPS
PAYS $500 A MONTH WITH
It’s likely that a high-deductible plan A $6,000 DEDUCTIBLE
paired with a health savings account FOR EMPLOYER-PROVIDED
will be on your employer’s menu in COVERAGE FOR HIMSELF,
HIS WIFE, EMILIE, AND
2019, although fewer companies will
THEIR SON, THOMAS.
offer a high-deductible plan as the
only option. You may also be able to
choose a lower-deductible preferred-
provider organization (PPO) plan—
which charges higher co-payments
if you use out-of-network providers—
or a health maintenance organization
(HMO) plan, which may have lower
premiums but usually only covers out-
of-network care in emergencies.

Compare your options. If you don’t
anticipate having many medical ex-
penses, you may come out ahead with
the lower-premium, high-deductible
plan. But do the math as you compare
your options. When calculating your
costs, find out exactly what is subject
to the deductible—some plans have
one deductible for the whole family,
and others have a separate deductible
for each insured person.
“The conventional wisdom is that
if you’re young and healthy, a high-
deductible plan is a good fit, and if and their 1-year-old son, Thomas. The ment (see the box on page 30). To
you have chronic health care needs, monthly premiums match what the qualify for an HSA, your health plan
you’ll want a higher-premium, low- family paid in the past—but the plan’s must have a deductible of at least
deductible plan. But that is not always $6,000 deductible is nearly double that $1,350 for single coverage or $2,700
the case,” says Ryan McCostlin, head of their policy at his former job. for family coverage in 2019.
of individual health care planning for So far, the coverage has worked for Most employers pay you to choose
Bernard Health, a benefits advisory the Phillipses, who live in Raleigh, the high-deductible plan; 85% of the
firm. With a high-deductible policy, he N.C. Still, Cameron and Emilie will be employers in the NBGH survey ex-
says, you can sometimes pay for out-of- reviewing their options this fall—and pect to contribute to employees’ HSAs
pocket costs with premium savings. hoping for a wider variety of plans. in 2019, with an average contribution
After changing jobs earlier this year, “I would rather pay a little less in pre- of $500 for employee-only coverage
Cameron Phillips, 34, discovered that miums each month, even if we’ll pay a and $1,000 for family coverage. Some

28 KIPLINGER’S PERSONAL FINANCE 11/2018 PHOTOGRAPH BY JILLIAN CLARK

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