Manage Your Health Savings Account (HSA)

Now that the Affordable Care Act has gone into effect, managing your health savings account (HSA) is important to pay attention to.

Healthcare.gov defines Health Savings Accounts as such: “A medical savings account available to taxpayers who are enrolled in a High Deductible Health Plan. The funds contributed to the account aren’t subject to federal income tax at the time of deposit. Funds must be used to pay for qualified medical expenses. Unlike a Flexible Spending Account (FSA), funds roll over year to year if you don’t spend them.”

You are able to use your HSA for any family member listed as a dependent on your taxes. A “qualified medical expense” can mean various things. This includes medical and dental expenses which can consist of the costs of diagnoses (lab tests), cure, mitigation or reduction of pain and costs for treatments.

To learn more, the IRS Publication 502 explains in greater detail. These things can add up if not properly managed. Knowing costs upfront is vital to managing your healthcare budget along with your HSA. We help to fill one of those holes due to our wide selection of lab tests with upfront pricing. You know exactly how much your test is before you get it done. This saves you many headaches and helps you to manage your HSA in its entirety.

Visit www.anylabtestnow.com/aca to learn more.

Be Crystal Clear When It Comes to Your Policy

Imagine heading to take your semi-yearly cholesterol check and as you go to pay, you are quickly told that your plan only covers a test once every two years. When you are used to your tests being covered twice a year, that’s not a fun situation to be in, which is why it’s so important to make sure you are crystal clear on what the Affordable Care Act covers in your plan when it comes to lab testing.

Preventative Care Services are available at no additional cost to you through the ACA, but some details about that can become a little fuzzy and confusing. Based on your particular insurance policy, some lab testing services may no longer be covered or covered the way they may have been in the past. It’s necessary to double check with your provider so that there aren’t any surprises!

When the time comes and you need a lab test, keep in mind that we are your affordable solution to Take Control of Your Health® and keep your premium costs as low as possible. We WILL help you in the long run when it comes to your health and your wallet.

See How We Can Make Your Life Easy When It Comes to the Affordable Care Act

We’re getting excited for Thanksgiving, which is making us extra thankful! We are thankful for you and for our ability to help guide you through the Affordable Care Act. ANY LAB TEST NOW® is now acting as your right hand man when it comes to affordable healthcare. Want to know why? Because we make your life a whole lot easier by making the lab testing process simple, convenient and extremely affordable.

Be prepared because as the new year starts, so does the new health care reform. This means that you will be responsible for managing more of your health care budget. Lab testing can take up a large part of that budget… which is where we come in.

Tests have to be done in order to properly diagnose, so it’s inevitable, but it doesn’t have to cost you an arm and a leg anymore. ANY LAB TEST NOW is where you can afford your testing. Check out more details and how we can help you here. We shared what we are thankful for, now let’s hear it from you! What are you most thankful for this season?

Women’s Health: How to Make the Most of Your Options for Care

Apart from general health issues, women have multiple unique health care concerns throughout their lifespan.  Some of these concerns include pregnancy, menopause, breast and reproductive health, and though men and woman share a lot of the same general health concerns, they can affect women very differently.  Some of these differences are:

  • Heart Health – 40% of women do not survive their first heart attack
  • Mental Health – women are more likely to suffer from depression and anxiety
  • Sexually Transmitted Diseases – the effects of STDs are more serious in women than in men
  • Bone Density – women make up 80% of the estimated 10 million Americans with osteoporosis
  • Lupus – women make up 9 out of 10 adults with Lupus

With all of this to consider, it is important for women to remain aware of their state of health with regular visits to the doctor and healthy lifestyle choices, but keeping all of these issues in check can be costly.  Between co-pays for doctor’s visits, the cost of lab work and the cost of the follow-up visit, a single check-up could run hundreds, if not thousands of dollars depending on access to health insurance and the level of coverage.   To help keep health care costs under control and understanding that women’s health needs are particular, Health Care Reform under the Affordable Care Act has declared a list of eight preventative health services just for women that are available with no cost-sharing or co-payment due upon visit to the doctor*.  These services became accessible to women on August 1, 2012 and include:

  1. Breastfeeding: access to breastfeeding supplies as well as comprehensive support and counseling from trained providers for pregnant and nursing women
  2. Contraception: Food and Drug Administration-approved contraceptive methods, sterilization procedures, and patient education and counseling
  3. Domestic and interpersonal violence: screening and counseling for all women
  4. Gestational diabetes: screening for women 24 to 28 weeks pregnant and those at high risk of developing gestational diabetes
  5. Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV): screening and counseling for sexually active women
  6. Human Papillomavirus (HPV) DNA Test: high risk HPV DNA testing every three years for women with normal cytology results who are 30 or older
  7. Sexually Transmitted Infections (STI): screening and counseling for sexually active women
  8. Well-woman visits: to obtain recommended preventive services

*Coverage by doctors within network. Check insurance coverage policies to confirm   Along with this increased standard of care it is also important for women to know that they have choices  when managing costs and their level of care.  For women with low-income that are possibly unable to afford health insurance, options such as Medicaid have been expanded to offer free or low-cost care, the Bronze plan is available within the Health Insurance Marketplace and covers 60% of health care costs with 40% of costs paid for out-of-pocket and Catastrophic Plans are available for those under 30 years of age and are considered healthy but want to have minimum coverage, “just in case.”  Eligibility for these plans depend on income and family size.  In addition, there are always Health Savings Accounts (HSAs) and Flexible Spending Accounts (FSAs) linked to high-deductable plans and cover most services such as lab tests, telemedicine services and prescriptions.   Simple tips for women that want to keep their health and cost for care in check are:

  • Make healthy lifestyle choices such as healthy eating habits and dedicating to regular, moderate exercise
  • Create a calendar for the year for all necessary, preventative “Well-Woman” services and include a budget for each visit
  • Pay for affordable services out of pocket, such as lab testing whenever possible
  • There is no longer any need to go to your doctor for a baseline of your health – pay for cholesterol, heart health, hormone and wellness tests out-of-pocket or with an HSA or FSA at your local affordable, direct access lab testing facility ANY LAB TEST NOW®.

Take Control of Your Health® and stay up-to-date on the latest in women’s health issues by visiting our site regularly at www.anylabtestnow.com, by “liking” our Facebook Page, or following us on Twitter, and Pinterest.