Bristol Health offers a Health Savings Account (HSA) through Inspira.

What is a Health Savings Account (HSA)?

A Health Savings Account (HSA) is a tax-advantaged savings account that is used with a high-deductible health plan (HDHP), and allows you and your eligible dependents to use it for various qualified medical expenses.

Who can open an HSA?

If you meet the IRS requirements to establish an HSA, listed below, you can make contributions to your HSA, and the money you contribute from your paycheck is deducted on a pre-tax basis. HSA funds are not taxed when withdrawn for qualified healthcare expenses. However, if you withdraw funds for non-healthcare expenses, you will be subject to income tax and, if you’re under age 65, an additional 20% tax penalty. There are annual limits set by federal regulations on how much you can contribute, but your balance carries over year to year, can earn tax-deferred interest, and belongs to you even if you change employers.

How does the HSA work?

The HSA is set up upon enrollment in the HDHP Plan. Bristol Health will contribute to your HSA depending on the level of coverage selected. If you elect to contribute to the HSA, then pre-tax payroll deductions are deposited from each paycheck into your HSA. You will receive separate communication from Inspira with specific instructions and options.

When you and certain eligible dependents incur a qualified healthcare expense, such as a doctor or hospital visit, you can pay using the debit card, provided to you by Inspira, or by using online bill pay via their secure HSA website. If you don’t have enough money in your HSA to cover a healthcare expense, you can pay using other sources, and simply reimburse yourself later when the money is available. You won’t need to submit any receipts for approval, but it’s important to maintain receipts for all expenses you pay with your HSA for tax and record keeping requirements.

Contribution Limits

Employees enrolling in the HDHP Plan with the HSA will receive the following contribution from Bristol Health into their HSA. The Bristol Health

contribution is pro-rated per pay period. If you join the plan after enrollment, the Bristol Health HSA contribution will be pro-rated based on number of months covered during the year.

What are the IRS requirements?

• You must be enrolled in the HDHP Plan offered by Bristol Health.
• You must not be covered under another health plan, including Medicare Part A/B and TRICARE.
• You or your spouse, if applicable, must not be enrolled in a Health Care Flexible Spending Acco
  unt (FSA) that reimburses for medical expenses.
• You must not be claimed as a dependent on another person’s tax return.