Healthy Diets Shown to Have Benefit Despite Modest Weight Losses - New York Times

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Healthy Diets Shown to Have Benefit Despite Modest Weight Losses New York Times - Jul 17, 2008 By TARA PARKER-POPE In a tightly controlled dieting experiment, obese people lost an average of just 6 to 10 pounds over two years. Video: Low-Carb Beats Low-Fat CBS YOU ASKED WE ANSWERED: Dr. Shai Answers Your Diet Questions ABC News USA Today - MSNBC - U.S. News & World Report - Food Consumer all 575 bulk calcium citrate articles

As healthcare costs keep rising, the traditional employer paid healthcare coverage is becoming a thing of the past. Because of the constant steep increase in healthcare costs, employers are searching for ways to control costs, and yet still be able to provide health coverage for their employees.

As a result, employers are looking to their employees to take more responsibility for how they use their healthcare.

Health Savings Accounts (HAS) are being offered as an affordable solution. HAS's have some very friendly tax advantages. Qualified contributions are tax deductible and the qualified withdrawals are tax-free. At the same time, they force the taxpayer to be more responsible about how they spend their healthcare dollars.

Ok so can everyone own an HAS? The answer is no. The most important limitation is that individuals must be covered by a qualifying high deductible health plan, also know as HDHP. Once a taxpayer opens an HAS and the fund has a balance, the taxpayer may use it for qualified medical expenses regardless whether the taxpayer remains qualified to make contributions.

Not everyone can open an HSA. The most important limitation is that individuals must be covered under a qualifying "high-deductible" health insurance plan (HDHP) to open an HSA and make contributions to it. Once an HSA has a balance, however, it may be used for qualified medical expenses regardless of whether the individual participant remains qualified to make contributions. In addition to requiring participation in a high-deductible medical plan, individuals contributing to an HSA also cannot have any disqualifying coverage. Coverage for this purpose is determined on the first of each month, month to month. This feature allows an individual the flexibility even within a single tax year to be qualified to make contributions in any or all months.

A taxpayer who is enrolled in Medicare Part A or Part B cannot participate in an HSA because it is a form of disqualifying coverage. However, if the taxpayer is eligible for Medicare but has not yet enrolled, he or she is still eligible to make contributions.

Additionally, the taxpayer cannot have received any medical benefits from the Veterans Administration for the preceding three months. Furthermore, active and retired members of the military cannot make HSA contributions if they receive benefits under TRICARE, because it does not meet the minimum annual deductible requirement for an HDHP.

I have very briefly explained here about HAS accounts. I hope this article has planted a seed for you, and I encourage everyone to further research the advantages and limitations of HSA accounts. You can realize great savings by properly managing your healthcare.

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