Thanks.
I remember when HSAs came about; it was under Bush 2 and he had been toiling with the idea of allowing people to manage their own Social Security accounts and invest a portion in the stock market, bonds, etc. The idea is that people could invest better than the government. But, of course, that didn't pass, so the HSA was developed for folks who wanted to save for their old age (not expire each year like the FSAs) and also allow them to invest those funds in the stock market through a manager. In the past, when I actually paid medical insurance and had a high deductible policy, I created an HSA and maxed out the investment for 3 years, but then when it didn't make sense to pay medical insurance (high premiums / high deductible / out of sight costs), I switched to the Medical Cost Sharing method, with premiums at about $225 per month and typically 100% reimbursement of my cash-based negotiated costs. (I recently received a 91% reduction in the cost of an ER visit, down from $21K, simply by paying cash.) Anyway, I don't believe HSAs should be tax deductible but people should be allowed to invest in them, with tax free earnings; similar to a Roth IRA. Oh well.
