house Bill H.R. 2163
Should People Be Able to Use Health Savings Account Funds for Expenses While on Family Leave?
Argument in favor
While workers should be able to take leave from their jobs for births, adoptions, or family members’ illness, paid family leave shouldn’t rely on new taxes or federal mandates that burden employers. Since families already use health savings accounts (HSAs) to save for healthcare expenses, it makes sense to broaden access to HSAs and allow funds to be used as a saving mechanism for paid leave.
09/14/2019
1. Medical related needs are medical expenses! 2. Universal healthcare NOW- Medicare for all. When we ALL pool our resources we ALL do better. Healthy young people paying forward to help save for when they are old and need more medical care.
09/14/2019
It’s their money to begin with and they should be able to use it for medical related expenses and if you’re on leave for a medical condition that would qualify, even if it’s just to pay the rent.
Although a better option would be to have affordable healthcare available to everyone.
09/14/2019
I have never understood why our Government seems to think they always knows what’s best for us and Society. Government should stop and stay out of people’s lives and stop telling people how they should run their lives. 99% of our problems today is due to government intervention. Them telling us they know what’s best for us. Think about that for awhile. Smaller government is good. Big government is VERY VERY BAD.
Argument opposed
Health savings accounts (HSAs), while useful for middle- and higher-income earners, aren’t particularly useful for lower-income earners (who are also the most likely to not have paid family leave policies at their employers) as they have less money to save in an HSA. The federal government should fund a paid leave program of its own instead of broadening the uses of HSAs.
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09/14/2019
All this legislation does is to release employer's from having to support legitimate paid medical leave to care for ill family members. All the flowery political doublespeak sounds good until you peel back the petals. This could certainly aid people employed by some of the alternative, kind of illegal, employer cost cutting practices of making everyone a contract employee- but that I a separate problem. Legislating this option, making it available to all employers (large and small) only pushes what should be employer paid leave onto individuals to pay from their health care savings accounts.
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09/14/2019
A typical Republican bill to make it sound good but in reality it benefits wealthy employers and higher paid individuals the most.
It does almost nothing for most middle class and nothing for the poor. It’s another ridiculous ploy!!
09/14/2019
Needing time off from work to care for a newborn or family member is just one part of life that this country ignores. This is not the way to fix it. HSA accounts were designed to save for increasing healthcare costs as one ages. When young, you don’t spend it all, it “goes with you” should you change jobs and it doesn’t expire. So later in life when the costly health issues of aging arise, you will have a fund to help. It is used now largely by the middle and above folks. But if it were company funded like Whole Foods and the State of Indiana do, it could benefit all and drive down healthcare costs. Those two have seen upwards of 75% savings. In short, fix the problem. Leave the HSA alone to fulfill its promise.
1. Medical related needs are medical expenses! 2. Universal healthcare NOW- Medicare for all. When we ALL pool our resources we ALL do better. Healthy young people paying forward to help save for when they are old and need more medical care.
All this legislation does is to release employer's from having to support legitimate paid medical leave to care for ill family members. All the flowery political doublespeak sounds good until you peel back the petals. This could certainly aid people employed by some of the alternative, kind of illegal, employer cost cutting practices of making everyone a contract employee- but that I a separate problem. Legislating this option, making it available to all employers (large and small) only pushes what should be employer paid leave onto individuals to pay from their health care savings accounts.
A typical Republican bill to make it sound good but in reality it benefits wealthy employers and higher paid individuals the most.
It does almost nothing for most middle class and nothing for the poor. It’s another ridiculous ploy!!
Needing time off from work to care for a newborn or family member is just one part of life that this country ignores. This is not the way to fix it. HSA accounts were designed to save for increasing healthcare costs as one ages. When young, you don’t spend it all, it “goes with you” should you change jobs and it doesn’t expire. So later in life when the costly health issues of aging arise, you will have a fund to help. It is used now largely by the middle and above folks. But if it were company funded like Whole Foods and the State of Indiana do, it could benefit all and drive down healthcare costs. Those two have seen upwards of 75% savings. In short, fix the problem. Leave the HSA alone to fulfill its promise.
We must come together as a NATION and support our families FULLY, if we are going to be able to grow into the future. Individuals and families CANNOT DO THIS ON THEIR OWN. Face it, most of us aren’t republican senators who get slush funds from Russia and the NRA. Families need federal support, plain and simple.
Another Repugnant idea that benefits the wealthier families. Thy just never stop trying to keep the wealthy happy, do they?
Being able to use funds from Health-savings accounts for family leave is really only a privilege that the wealthy will be able to have since they can afford to put more money into these accounts! We need to mandate paid family leave!
It’s a Health Savings Account, not an unemployment account. Why not extend Unemployment Benefits to family leave? The employer and employee have contributed to unemployment funds: directly by the employer and indirectly by the employee through lower pay.
I don’t think this is how health savings accounts are intended to be used? 🤷♀️
A typical Republican Bill. This legislation is designed for the wealthy with no thought for those less well off. Most middle and low income families cannot afford to fund HSA’s and may not even have access to them. The United States does not value it’s citizens and it’s policies reflect that as opposed to the civilized world.
Pass a paid medical leave act for all families. This bill would only benefit the upper echelons.
If families are a priority, we should walk the talk and provide all mothers paid leave for the birth of a child and mothers and fathers paid leave to bond with a child following, birth, fostering or adoption. The pay and leave time should not be dependent on the employer, but a set minimum standard for all. 12 weeks of unpaid leave is insufficient and negatively impacts low income earners. It is an unfair choice to require a new mom to elect whether to stay home with a child and receive no pay or return to work to put food on the table and pay rent.
Federal and state officials should lead by example and adopt paid leave to support families and family values for government employees and contractors.
If you want the tax protected status for HSA funds then use them for that specified purpose. Don’t keep adding things to the list for every possible occurrence.
Paid family leave, that does not leave the family vulnerable for unexpected medical expenses either during the leave or after, makes far better sense.
HSA’s should be used for hospital and doctors charges. Just because they are on paid family vacation should this HSA’s be used to take his wife out to dinner or to go to a movie?
👎🏻👎🏻 HSA’s Are For Medical Expenses NOT Living Expenses 👎🏻👎🏻
Health savings accounts (HSAs), while useful for middle- and higher-income earners, aren’t particularly useful for lower-income earners (who are also the most likely to not have paid family leave policies at their employers) as they have less money to save in an HSA. The federal government should fund a paid leave program of its own instead of broadening the uses of HSAs.
SneakyPete..... 👎🏻👎🏻👎🏻👎🏻👎🏻. 9.14.19.....
It’s their money to begin with and they should be able to use it for medical related expenses and if you’re on leave for a medical condition that would qualify, even if it’s just to pay the rent.
Although a better option would be to have affordable healthcare available to everyone.