Consumer-Directed Health Plans Are Growing in Popularity

Consumer-directed health plans like Health Savings Accounts (HSAs), Flexible Spending Accounts (FSAs) and Health Reimbursement Accounts (HRAs) are becoming more popular as Americans seek to gain greater control over managing their high healthcare costs. In a report released by AARP today, researchers found that consumers can benefit from consumer-directed health plans, but deciding which plan is best and having the skills to manage the plan may be more than some consumers are able to handle.

According to a press release in early 2007, the BlueCross BlueShield Association reports that 57% of HSA-eligible enrollees opened HSA accounts in 2006. According to the same press release, the U.S. Department of Treasury estimates that by 2010, 40 to 45 million Americans will be enrolled in an HSA-eligible insurance plan.

BlueCross BlueShield Association is launching the Blue Healthcare Bank in order to help provide its healthcare insurance customers a one-stop, integrated customer service model with expertise in healthcare-related financial services. The Blue Healthcare Bank will work with BlueCross BlueShield companies to provide debit cards and other financial services tied to HSAs, FSAs, and HRAs.

According to the Government Accounting Office (GAO), the reason consumer-directed health plans are becoming so popular is because of the rising costs of health care in America. Consumer-directed health plans can provide consumers a convenient, consistent way to pay for eligible medical, dental, and vision services and for expenses associated with high-deductible medical plans.