{"id":15519,"date":"2018-04-03T09:00:05","date_gmt":"2018-04-03T09:00:05","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/associatednews.us\/content\/2018\/04\/03\/health-savings-account-change-in-2018-could-trip-up-some-consumers\/"},"modified":"2018-04-03T09:00:05","modified_gmt":"2018-04-03T09:00:05","slug":"health-savings-account-change-in-2018-could-trip-up-some-consumers","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/associatednews.us\/content\/health-savings-account-change-in-2018-could-trip-up-some-consumers\/","title":{"rendered":"Health Savings Account Change In 2018 Could Trip Up Some Consumers"},"content":{"rendered":"

By Michelle Andrews<\/a><\/span> <\/p>\n

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\n Money deposited in a health savings account is tax-deductible, grows tax-free and can be used to pay for medical expenses. The annual maximum allowable contribution to an HSA is slightly lower for some people this year.<\/p>\n

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Fanatic Studio\/Getty Images\/Collection Mix: Subjects RF<\/p>\n

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Fanatic Studio\/Getty Images\/Collection Mix: Subjects RF<\/p>\n

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Members of Congress have said they want to loosen rules for health savings accounts. Did they do it in the latest spending bill? Do people who were uncovered for one month in 2017 owe a tax penalty? And how can immigrants who move to the U.S. to retire get insurance? These are the questions I’m tackling for readers this week:<\/p>\n

I heard that health savings account rules would be loosened under the new spending bill passed by Congress last month. Did that happen?<\/strong><\/p>\n

No. In fact, the standards have become slightly tighter this year.<\/p>\n

In recent years, members of Congress from both parties have supported expanding eligibility for health savings accounts and also expanding the list of ways that money can be spent. To date, though, those proposals<\/a>, as well as other changes regarding the accounts, haven’t become law.<\/p>\n

Health savings accounts, which are linked to high-deductible health plans<\/a>, continue to multiply. In 2017, there were 22 million accounts totaling more than $45 billion in assets, an increase of 11 percent in the number of accounts over the previous year, according to Devenir<\/a>, a firm that offers advice on HSA investments.<\/p>\n