Picked the high deductible plan last open enrollment and it backfired hard

Last November I had to choose between a PPO with a $500 monthly premium and a high deductible HSA plan at $200 a month. I went with the HSA because I'm pretty healthy and wanted to save that $300 each month. Then in February I fell off my bike during a group ride in Prospect Park and broke my wrist in two places. The ER visit, surgery, and follow up PT ended up costing me about $6,800 out of pocket before the deductible kicked in. That $300 a month savings turned into a $6,800 hit real fast. I wish I had thought harder about what happens when something unexpected goes wrong. Has anyone else had a similar experience picking a plan based on normal days and getting wrecked by one bad one?

2 comments

2 Comments

cora5186d agoTop Commenter

My husband broke his ankle last year and we had the same HSA plan. I started putting the $300 monthly savings into the HSA account itself right away, not just pocketing it. By the time his accident happened we had built up about $2,400 in there which helped soften the blow. Did you have anything saved in your HSA before the bike crash?

susanb346d ago

Oh wait, I think you might have that backwards. The $300 monthly savings you mentioned was actually the difference between the high deductible plan and the PPO, right? So you were basically putting that money you saved on premiums into the HSA, which is smart but not the same as getting the full $300 as extra cash flow. I mean, it's still a good strategy, just wanted to clarify that part.