HSAs and Financial
Wellness:
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Holistic Approach
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short review of HSAs – some
basic, some new
 Context and connection: your
physical and financial health
 We view financial education as
a stress reduction tool
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We provide personal service, delivered by
subject matter experts – our Bank Mission:
To Add Value
130 year-old locally owned (Rock River
Valley) independent, mid-sized bank
“Five Star” rating from Bauer Financial and
“Outstanding” by the FDIC
We custodian 5,000+ HSAs nationally,
working with over 350 employer groups as
well as individual clients
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We not only custodian HSAs, we’ve owned
them too-since January, 2005
We understand the “end-user perspective”
Like you, we view our roles as guides for our
clients; because of this members of our HSA
team are Life and Health licensed through
Wisconsin OCI
We’ve been through the conversion-to-aCDHP firsthand. Here’s what we learned…
Blackhawk Bank
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Understanding how the HSA works (the
mechanics) is important for everyone involved
in the process - client, agent, accountant
Education is the key to successful
implementation and to seeing the value of a
Consumer Driven Health Plan and an HSA
CDHPs can be a good fit for any industry, and
any size group.
What Exactly Is A Health Savings Account?
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A tax preferred bank account (usually checking)
– this means that you put money in tax free if
through payroll deduction.
Post tax contributions can come from any
number of sources, and are tax deductible
when the individual files (always federal; most
states – now finally in Wisconsin)
A client earns interest tax free
Monies spent or “distributed” stay tax free as
long as they are used for medical expenses
(RXs, dental, vision, deductibles) for you OR
your dependents. Note: These folks don’t have
to be covered by your insurance
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A Savings account is NOT transactional
Conversely, a Checking account is designed
specifically for transactions - paying bills, or
buying goods and services
Savings and Checking accounts are governed by
different rules
They are coded differently “behind the scenes” at
the bank
HSAs are Checking accounts that have specific
codes related to taxation, producing different
end-of year documents for reporting purposes
Currently enrolled in a CDHP (HDHP)
 Not enrolled in and using Medicare**
 Not claimed as a dependent on someone
else’s taxes
 Not covered by other medical insurance
(exceptions are workers’ comp., separate
dental, vision, etc.)
**Please consult www.ustreas.gov for further details
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For Individuals, the opportunity is $3,250
 For Families, the opportunity is $6,400
 Catch up is $1,000 per eligible individual*
*Spouses must have a separate account, but
once established funds cannot co-mingle;
a spouse does not have to be on your plan
to make this contribution but does need to
have Qualified High Deductible coverage of
their own (independently or through their
employer)
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Deductible Minimums for 2013: individual deductible
must be $1250, and family must be $2500 (each can
be higher, but this is the minimum)
Maximum total out of pocket limits for 2013: are
$6,250 for an individual and $12,500 for a family
Discount plans for drugs are fine, (like Walgreens or
CVS offers) and they work in tandem with any plan
No co-pay structure allowed for routine care and for
drugs (full cost out of pocket, less the network
discount)
Drug costs (regardless of how they are paid, or which
drugs are purchased) go toward satisfying the
deductible
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Money can be contributed pre-tax through
payroll, in addition to employer contributions
Balances accumulate tax free interest
Dollars stay tax free if spent on qualified
medical expenses (dental and vision too)
Post-tax deposits (deposits not made through
payroll) are tax deductible
Contributions can be posted up until April 15
for previous-year’s deductibility
WI is finally State tax deductible!
Payroll deductions CAN BE CHANGED
NO USE IT OR LOSE IT
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A debit card (remember the vast majority of
HSAs are actually checking accounts)
The ability to order checks from the bank of
choice, or from other sources
ATM access (standard with most debit cards)
Possibly – online banking
Possibly – online bill pay
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Have an upfront fee to open for the
individual
Have a monthly fee charged from day one
Be charged for “per-transaction use”
Charge for statements or online functions
Be a program that burdens employers with
layers of new administrative problems
Become a new headache for the Office
Manager , HR professional, or company
owner
Preventative Wellness +
Financial Education = A goal
of less stress-related illnesses
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Money and related issues rank in the top
three for stress inducing topics between
married people
Understanding your physical numbers (BMI,
cholesterol, blood pressure) is a great “first
step”
Feeling confident about your finances and
understanding how they work is an essential
part of “knowing your numbers”
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Suggest changes a person can make to their
diet
Discuss fitness options and coach toward
increased and varied activities
Help a person understand that they will
decrease the likelihood of chronic illness
through a lifestyle change
Offer tools for tracking progress
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Wellness programs typically do a fairly good,
if indirect, job of addressing different stress
related issues
Most programs include exercise elements
with varying difficulty – the goal being to at
least get folks moving if not in peak physical
condition
Movement = Endorphins = Stress reduction
Lifestyle Changes beyond the Physical
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Knowing your “numbers” is important to your
financial (as well as physical) health
Just as blood pressure and cholesterol scores
effect your physical life, your credit score
effects your financial one
Your credit score should be considered a
“vital statistic” and maintenance is a must
Unfortunately many people would rather
guess than know, much like other vital
statistics…
 Credit
Score – what it is; how it
effects day-to day expenses;
how to change it
 Budgeting – A tool that’s easy
to use
 Balancing – Knowing what you
have!
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Folks who have no idea how to read a credit
report (hint – that’s a lot of us!)
Folks who have never seen their credit report
or who haven’t looked at it in the last year
Those who can estimate what they think their
score should be…
Those who “know their credit should be
better than that” once they do see their score
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“Financial Fitness” workshops that are done a
la carte, chosen by an employer after an
employee survey
All information is confidential
There is no obligation for the employees to
bank with us before or after
Our goal is to be “of service” to the
communities we call home, and To Add Value
How to read and
understand your
credit report
MEMBER FDIC
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FICO scores have a 300-850 point range
Blackhawk Bank
Realize
Your
Dreams
by Living
on a
Budget
MEMBER FDIC
Housing 25%
Transportation 15%
Food 15%
Other Expenses* 15%
Entertainment 10%
Savings 10%
Clothing 5%
Charitable Giving 5%
*Other expenses can include utilities (Electricity, gas, phone cable/satellite TV, Internet
access), medical expenses and insurance.
Blackhawk Bank
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Means different things for different clients
One size does not fit all
Like you: We listen, then we tailor the
program to fit the clients needs
We serve local and distance clients
We would love to become the “HSA and
Financial Education go-to” for your team!