Health Savings Account (HSA): Useful for Women in Childbearing Years?

The Health Savings Account (HSA) is an amazing tool that a lot of people have been talking about. It is meant to help you save money on insurance and make your life simpler, maybe even help you be healthier.

But should a family with a woman in her childbearing years use an HSA?

This is an excellent question!

Obviously, a woman who is pregnant or might likely become pregnant needs to be very aware of her health insurance situation. Taking pre-natal classes, having a hospital delivery, Cesarian sections are all expensive, nevermind any potential complications.

Health Savings Accounts paired with a high-deductible health insurance policy can work for the family who might be expecting. Here’s how.

A high-deductible policy means that with a hospital delivery, you’ll definitely be paying that first $1,000, $2,500 or $5,000 (depending on the deductible), because the total cost will be that plus more. But after the deductible is satisfied, the insurance will kick in and pay for the rest of the cost.

However, it gets more complicated than that. In order to have maternity covered in a policy, you must buy an additional “insurance rider” for maternity. This rider comes with your insurance policy, not with the HSA. The rider is extremely expensive, it will add hundreds or thousands of dollars to your yearly cost of insurance.

So, if you are going to delivery using a regular hospital delivery, you should definitely purchase the additional maternity rider on your insurance policy. Remember that the high-deductible policy with the maternity rider will still be significantly cheaper than a low-deductible policy with the same rider. So you should still use a high-deductible policy, just add that rider.

But let me present one more option to the lucky parents. Have you considered a midwife, in-home delivery? Many parents are turning to this option. Create a relationship with a midwife or nurse-midwife and consult with her throughout the pregnancy. You might find that is is a safer, more comfortable way to have a child than the hospital environment. Just make sure you do your homework first. Find a midwife who has good qualifications and excellent references. And check the laws in your state. Midwifery is illegal in several states, because the Medical Boards do not appreciate them taking business away from hospitals.

If you rely on a midwife, your overall costs will go down dramatically, but you will not be able to use HSA money to pay a midwife. Also note that the maternity rider on your insurance policy will not help pay for midwifery services. Even with these disadvantages, you might find that your overall cost savings are so great that the midwife is not only the safest, most comfortable option, but also the least expensive.

The Health Savings Account, along with usage of holistic practitioners like midwives, will change healthcare in America forever. Be a part of the future of healthcare! HSAs are available today!