Skeptical Views Expressed

At the hearing, members of Congress of both parties expressed skepticism about adding HSAs, fearing that such plans damage the FEHB “risk pool” by drawing off generally younger and healthier enrollees. That could leave higher premiums and possibly lower benefits for those remaining in other plans, they said. OPM officials said they want to protect the FEHB pool but said HSAs would add another element of competition to the program and would provide incentives for not consuming health care services excessively. They also suggested that relatively few enrollees would migrate to HSAs, at least at the outset. Only about 5 percent of enrollees switch plans each year, they said, and enrollment in several relatively new “consumer-driven” health plans-in which enrollees similarly have financial incentives to hold down their consumption of health care services-is only a small fraction of the total. Some members of Congress also questioned whether the age 65 cutoff would violate law requiring that FEHB benefits be offered on an equal basis regardless of age. That issue, too, is still being explored.