3 free HSA tools to use during and beyond open enrollment

• Key insight: learn how employee education tools drive higher HSA/FSA utilization and engagement.  
• What's at stake: Underused accounts raise financial-wellness and retention risks for benefits programs.  
• Expert quote: "Lack of awareness is why employees skip HSAs/FSAs," says Jenna Everhart, Health e-Commerce.  
• Source: Bullets generated by AI with editorial review

Educating employees about their offerings can radically improve engagement, and new free resources from Health e-Commerce can help benefit managers maximize the impact of their tax-free health savings accounts (HSAs) and flexible spending accounts (FSAs). 

The average household spends an estimated $1,600 on HSA- and FSA-eligible health and wellness expenses each year — well below the maximum annual contribution for either account, says Jenna Everhart, Health e-Commerce's VP of human resources. Making sure employees understand how these accounts work is a great way to help them save money and offset the cost of items and services they already use, she explains.  

"Lack of awareness and lack of knowledge related to how the accounts work are consistently the top reasons why account holders say they didn't enroll in an FSA or HSA," Everhart says. "You want people to have a good experience. Educating and supporting employees in managing their benefits also helps them manage their finances and be more engaged, [which improves] their experience."

But rather than create resources for this from scratch, benefit leaders can tap into those that already exist: Free tools within Health e-Commerce's FSA and HSA Store sites, and a newly-created calendar filled with helpful reminders and educational links, can serve both benefit professionals and their employees during open enrollment and beyond. Read on to access these tools:

Read more:  'An epidemic that keeps growing': Supporting employees through substance use

Timely monthly messaging

Health e-Commerce's newly-created calendar is curated for benefit professionals to copy and include in anything from emails to newsletters to Slack, offering helpful reminders, links and advice to help employees make the most of their HSA and FSA accounts all year long. These can be coupled with any health initiative, such as a company wellness program or awareness weeks and months, says Everhart. 

"We do Wellness Wednesday emails; it could be wellness around moving your body, or mental or financial wellness," she says. "That's where we can layer in some of the reminders about HSA and FSA information. [And it's important to] direct people back to their portals, which is where their account balances are, their deadline information and all that."

Read more:  ezCater mixes time off, teambuilding to strike balance for staff

HSA and FSA calculators

Once employees determine if they are eligible for either an employer-sponsored FSA — offered to those enrolled in a group health plan — or a HSA — offered to those enrolled in a high-deductible health plan — they can use these online calculator tools to determine things like how much the account can help them save and how much they should contribute for maximum outcome. 

Because HSA funds roll over indefinitely and can be used in retirement, the HSA Store has a Future Value Calculator, which estimates the worth of an HSA based on how long and how much someone contributes; a Tax Savings Calculator, showing projected savings; and a 401(k) Maximizer, which helps determine how much to contribute to both an HSA and a 401(k) for best financial results. Since FSA funds don't roll over, the FSA Store offers a Spending Calculator to help estimate annual health spending and save accordingly.    

Read more:  2 strategies that help Gen Z understand their benefits better

The HSA Learning Center

With a broad spectrum of life stages in the workplace, meeting diverse needs is a must. Within the HSA Learning Center and FSA Learning Center, employees can find short, educational videos on setting up their account, eligible products and services and why it makes sense to use these accounts as savings tools for health and wellness needs. The HSA Learning Center also features a product eligibility game, a fun way for employees to understand the wide variety of things their account can be used for  

"People can come to us and know that we're compliant and that they're reading the facts, and they can digest and apply that information to their everyday life," Everton says. "We know that a lot of millennials and Gen Z find their information on Tiktok, and they want it in quick little videos, so our tools are built out [for that]. You could be a boomer and read a more lengthy article or search for whether or not something is eligible within our Learning Center too. Our tools apply to any generation."