Thank you for watching this presentation about the Health Savings Account offered by Missouri Consolidated Health Care Plan.

Hello, my name is Mark.

A Health Savings Account, or HSA, is a tax-advantaged savings account that may be used to pay current or future medical expenses. The HSA is offered by MCHCP with enrollment in the High Deducible Health Plan, or HDHP. The HDHP is explained in a separate video.

When you enroll online in the HDHP, you will be instructed to enroll online with Central Bank to set up your HSA. You own the HSA; it is yours when you retire or change employment. Unspent funds in the HSA roll over from year to year and may accrue interest.

If you are interested in the HSA, there are a few eligibility requirements you must consider. You qualify for an HSA if you are an individual or eligible spouse covered by a qualified High Deductible Health Plan.

You are not eligible to establish an HSA if you are covered by a medical plan other than a qualified HDHP. You also do not qualify if you are enrolled in Medicare or a Medical Flexible Spending Account. You do not qualify if you have used VA benefits within the last 3 months or can be claimed as a dependent on someone else's tax return.

Various other insurance coverages are allowed with the HSA. These include drug discount cards, special disease, illness, accident, dental, vision or Long-Term Care insurance, wellness and disease management programs and the Employee Assistance Program.

The HSA has several tax saving advantages. Funds contributed can be reported as non-taxable income. Withdrawals for qualified medical and pharmacy expenses are tax-free, and funds contributed by MCHCP are not taxable to you.

There are maximum contribution amounts set by the IRS for the HSA. For plan year 2010, the maximum contribution for subscriber only coverage is $3,050. The maximum for family coverage is $6,150. Members who are 55 or older have the opportunity for an annual $1,000 additional or "catch-up" contribution.

MCHCP will be contribute $600 annually for subscriber only coverage and $1,200 annually for subscriber/spouse, subscriber/children or subscriber/family coverage. Therefore, in addition to MCHCP's contributions, you may contribute up to $2,450 for individual coverage and up to $4,950 for family coverage for 2010.

Once you have funds available in your HSA, you may use your HSA account to pay for qualified medical and pharmacy expenses as well as your deductible and coinsurance. If funds are not used for qualified medical expenses, purchases are subject to a 10% penalty and income taxes.

For more information about the HSA, please refer to this website or call customer service at 800-487-0771, or call Central Bank’s call center at 877-554-5535. Also, please view the video for the High Deductible Health Plan.

Thank you for watching this presentation.