HSA Source Needed

Not sure what insurance plan you are under, but have you also considered an FSA? You must have a high deductible plan to have an HSA, but that is not a requirement with an FSA. The down side is that you lose whatever you don't use after the first quarter of the following year. But, if you know approximately what you will spend in out of pocket health care expenses, then you can avoid any losses, and still get a bit of a tax break. I think the limits this year are around $2500.

We use an FSA, and pay for allergy shots, prescriptions, eye care (contacts, glasses and optometrist care), orthodontic care, and whatever other random events. With kids, there always seems to be something. With the orthodontic treatment, we have NO concerns about leaving any funds unspent. :(

If you have a qualifying insurance plan they will go over your HSA options. You cannot just go out and get one.

If you are covered by a plan through work, usually your employer will choose one for you, which makes things easy because you can have your contributions deducted from your paycheck. We have PayFlex as the HSA vendor for my Aetna Consumer-directed Health Plan (CDHP), which is a qualifying high-deductible plan and it's pretty good. No issues so far. I would assume that in asking this question you have an unusual scenario where your employer and/or insurance company is not choosing this for you? Can you give some more info on what your insurance situation is? I'm just curious because I work in benefits administration and haven't come across someone asking about opening an HSA outside of their employer-sponsored plan.

Ok- JB and J C just threw me off with their answers. I too work in the benefits arena and want to clarify.

An HSA in my world is a health savings account. You need to be covered by a HDHP (high deductible health plan) to have one. It doesn't matter if you are covered through an employer or self-employed-both can have HDHP plans that qualify.

You can open a HSA at any financial institution that you want to. Look for one that doesn't have an opening fee-I haven't seen one yet that doesn't give you either checks or a debit card so...and most will give you interest on your money so it's a great deal.

Ditto what Jo W said and ....if your self employed and therefore self insured you can't have one either. It stinks! I am paying out of pocket for 2 kids in braces and we do not have dental insurance and can not participate in a HSA so after taxes we are paying for the braces.

You're getting info that may not apply to you.
We have a BC/BS HSA with our insurance and LOVE it.
Here's some info:

1. Who is eligible to open an HSA?
Anyone, individuals, employees and employers, can open an HSA but you must have a corresponding high deductible health policy. More technically, an HSA can be established for any individual that meets all of the following:

is covered by a high deductible health plan
is not covered by another health plan
is not eligible to be claimed as a dependent on another person’s tax return
is not entitled to Medicare benefits

Here's the source:
https://www.hsaresources.com/faq/#opening-01

You can't have an HSA on it's own. It must be paired with a qualifying insurance plan with a higher deductible. So you will have to buy insurance that meets the requirements and has an HSA option. (or have a plan through an employer)

Through my work, we can do that. But, the deductible is aobut double the other insurance.