Liz Weston
speaker
110 appearances
2 recordings
1 series
first heard Nov 2024
last heard Nov 2024
Liz Weston’s voice in public audio — every appearance, attributed to the second.
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Appearances
Okay, and finally, the HDHP. This might not be quite as familiar to listeners. So what does it stand for? What is it? And what are those advantages and disadvantages?
Okay, let's run down some of the key factors to consider when you're making these plan decisions. What are the main questions that individuals and families need to ask themselves when they're sorting through all their options?
And one last question, Kate. One of our producers was talking about what you might call the overabundance of options when you go through the Affordable Care Act exchanges. Those are also known as Obamacare exchanges. And you're trying to choose an individual health plan. She calls it overwhelming abundance and not in a good way. So there could be a dozen or more options to choose from.
Do you have any advice on how to start that process?
And this is why we have to take math in high school. Okay. Kate, thanks so much for helping us out today.
It may help my fellow maximizers to know that there probably isn't one perfect solution. You do the best you can, and if you find out there's a better choice, you can make it next year.
Well, that's what we're covering next, John. Pay close attention to our fellow nerd, Tina Orem, who's here with some specifics on those savings vehicles. Tina used to cover taxes for NerdWallet. She's now an editor, but she agreed to recap what she knows about tax-advantaged savings accounts for us. Tina, it's so great to have you back on the show.
So we just spent some time with Kate talking about the basics of choosing a health plan, but we wanted to bring you on to talk about a couple of options that are also offered by many employers, and they're essentially savings vehicles. So explain for us the overall purpose of FSAs, which are flexible spending accounts, and HSAs, which are health savings accounts.
Oh, so true. So how do you get these goodies?
Well, let's take a more detailed look at FSAs first. Those are the flexible spending accounts. What are some of the specific elements of these kinds of savings vehicles?
Okay.
Always good.
Let's get into the nitty gritty of how they actually work. I think most people get something that looks and operates like a prepaid card, don't they? How does the money get on those cards?
And sometimes it's through reimbursement, though, right?
Okay. And this is the part of our healthcare system that sends people scurrying to drugstores across America in late December because of that use it or lose it by the end of the calendar year. Can you give us some tips for avoiding that?
Yeah, you're probably right. Let's move on to HSAs, which are health savings accounts. What can we use these for and how do they work?
Yes, it is. Okay. So what's the catch?
And we should say that high deductible health insurance plans are not a good fit for everybody. So no matter how cool the HSA is, it might not be the best choice for you. Right. Okay. So some companies won't just provide the opportunity to have an HSA. They'll actually contribute to it, right?
Okay. Is there anything you can't use this account for?
OK, I wanted to circle back to talking about this as a tax and investment vehicle on top of being a health care option. How does the tax stuff work here?
Showing 81–100 of 110 · page 5 of 6
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