Uncle Sam isn’t just going to hand you over a tax-exempt health savings account (HSA) without something in return. They want us to have some skin in the game. Risk, as I like to call it. Taking on risk is actually one of the eligibility requirements, and the IRS uses a high deductible health plan (HDHP) to create that risk. That makes the high deductible health plan the bedrock of the health savings account. It’s...
If you play your cards right, health savings accounts can save you some serious money on healthcare. We can use this account to reduce our taxable income and put those tax dollars towards our health. But this isn’t just something you sign up for on a whim. First, we need to understand the rules of the game. But where do we start? I suppose putting together a health savings account series was inevitable. Who knows,...
Max has been flying solo for several weeks now. Mrs. Max OOP is up in Canada studying meat processing, and I have been fending for myself here in New England. So far, I am surviving. Other than moving the couch directly in front of the TV, the house hasn’t been completely bachelorized or anything. I think I can hold things together until she finishes the program in late December. My wife has been learning a ton...
I was lucky enough to attend another healthcare conference back in early December of 2019. Imagine that, a time when conferences were still being attended in person. Fresh off my recent trip to Ecuador to mingle with other personal finance nerds, I thought I would ease into my first week back at work with a two-day mini-conference. It was the second day and we were scheduled to go until about noon. I was toward the...
When it looks like a purchase is going to run me more than a few hundred dollars, the analysis process starts. It is automatic, and I can’t stop it. Some might consider this a telltale sign of a cheapskate. But I know there is a difference between being cheap and being smart with your money. As a purchase moves into the several thousand-dollar range, a deeper analysis is required. It might even require an excel...