A Medicare+Choice MSA is an Archer MSA designated by Medicare to be used solely to pay the qualified medical expenses of the account holder. To be eligible for a Medicare+Choice MSA, you must be eligible for Medicare and have a high deductible health plan (HDHP) that meets the Medicare guidelines.

A Medicare+Choice MSA is a tax-exempt trust or custodial savings account that you set up with a financial institution (like a bank or an insurance company) in which the Medicare program can deposit money for qualified medical expenses. The money in your account is not taxed if it is used for qualified medical expenses, and it may earn interest or dividends.

An HDHP is a special health insurance policy that has a high deductible. You choose the policy you want to use as part of your Medicare+Choice MSA plan. However, the policy must be approved by the Medicare program.

Note. At the time this publication went to print, no HDHP had been approved by Medicare. Therefore, no Medicare+Choice MSAs have been established to date.

Medicare+Choice MSAs are administered through the Federal Medicare program. The Health Care Financing Administration (HCFA) has more information about this program. You can get this information by calling 1-800-318-2596. You can also reach HCFA through the Internet at www.medicare.gov.

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