Many people are aware that expenses for long term care services can be paid by a HSA – a health savings account established in conjunction with a high deductible medical plan. Fewer people know that long term care insurance premiums are also considered a qualified medical expense and therefore can be paid on a pre-tax basis through a HSA.
As you know, a health savings account is a tax-exempt financial vehicle set up to pay or reimburse certain medical expenses for eligible individuals. Because they are funded with pre-tax dollars and not subject to taxes at withdrawal, they can be a very helpful way to cover health care expenses. Another attractive feature is that contributions to a HSA can carry over to the following year and accumulate. In addition, the funds are able to be invested and grow tax-free.
In order to open a HSA someone must be covered under a high deductible health plan, and meet some other requirements. Here are a few items to consider regarding using a HSA to pay for LTC insurance:
- The long-term care insurance contract must be tax-qualified (which most all policies tend to be these days).
- There is a limitation on eligible long term care insurance premiums, as well as a limitation on annual deposits into a HSA.
- The deduction for eligible long-term care insurance premiums is limited to a maximum dollar amount, defined by the taxpayer’s age on the last day of that tax year.
The limitations for 2023 are shown below:
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- Age 40 or under: $480 (was $450 in 2022)
- Age 41-50: $890 (was $850 in 2022)
- Age 51-60: $1,790 (was $1,690 in 2022)
- Age 61-70: $4,770 (was $4,510 in 2022)
- Age 71 or older: $5,960 (was $5,640 in 2022)