As the pandemic persists and contributes to rising inflation and a looming economic recession, Americans from all walks of life may be worried about health care costs.
Rep. Chip Roy (R-Texas)’s proposed Medical Freedom Act would help Americans regain control over their healthcare costs by creating a “Health Freedom Account” similar to existing medical savings accounts. and Medical savings accounts allow patients to save pre-tax dollars for future medical expenses, but they are limited to medical plans with high deductibles and have many restrictions on the types of medical expenses covered. It contains. Roy’s bill would not only allow all Americans to qualify for a Health Freedom Account, regardless of health insurance type, but would also expand the list of eligible medical expenses.
As a physician, I urge Congress to pass this bill to give patients greater autonomy over their health care.
Health savings accounts were first established in 2003 as part of the Medicare Prescription Drug Improvement and Modernization Act and have become more popular over the past two decades as many employers began offering highly deductible health care plans. I was. Many patients with high deductible plans do not meet their annual deductibles and are forced to rely on money from their health savings account to cover their regular medical expenses. For these individuals, the money spent on premiums by themselves or their employers is wasted. To make matters worse, current regulations also prohibit using health savings accounts to pay insurance premiums. These policies only serve to enrich insurance companies at the expense of patients and private employers.
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Currently, HSA allows family contributions of up to $7,300 annually to a tax-deductible account, which makes that year’s contributions tax-free. In addition, the money can grow tax-free and be withdrawn from tax-free accounts. These tax protection mechanisms are how his HSA became known by the coveted descriptor “triple tax free”. In addition to allowing every American to get her HSA/HFA, the Health Care Freedom Act almost doubled the annual contribution limit to $12,000, with an additional $5,000 for individuals over the age of 55. can be contributed. These changes are necessary due to the rapid rise in healthcare costs, which already routinely exceed astronomical inflation rates.
The Freedom of Care Act also expands the list of approved medical costs to include insurance premiums, direct enrollment with primary care physicians, and payments to the Ministry of Health Sharing. The bill would allow funds from HSA to be used for all of this, plus additional services that may not be covered by health insurance. For example, patients who come to a dermatology clinic can use money from HSA/HFA to pay for removal of benign skin lesions or other procedures deemed “cosmetic” by insurance companies. . From a physician’s perspective, it enables a wider range of practice possibilities that enable physicians to practice more personalized medicine.
As HFAs become more common, more patients will be able to obtain their medications through compounding and specialty pharmacies, eliminating middlemen and reducing costs. In fact, physicians are concerned with insurance issues such as step therapy (requiring patients to fail certain categories of drugs before insurance covers alternative therapies) if patients could pay for the drugs directly. can be avoided. As a dermatologist, I frequent consumer pharmacies to ensure my patients receive treatments customized for their skin.
Healthcare Freedom Accounts extend access to these services to patient populations who may not have the financial ability to pay for these treatments out of pocket. Employers may love the added flexibility of the HFA. The new health savings account can be offered as a benefit to employees without being forced to join the group’s high-deductible health insurance plan.
The net effect of increasing the number of approved costs would be greater autonomy for patients and physicians. From a patient’s perspective, the Healthcare Freedom Act allows them to spend their hard-earned savings in a way that best aligns with their values.
As a physician, I look forward to serving my patients according to the principles of the Hippocratic Oath, rather than following arbitrary guidelines from insurance companies.
Aamir Hussain is a Resident Physician practicing in Washington, DC. Rufus Sweeney, a medical student at the University of Wisconsin, helped create this story.
