Employers sponsoring HSA compatible high-deductible health plans have been anxiously awaiting a determination about whether a plan will be able to continue to cover remote services prior to satisfaction of the HSA minimum statutory deductible. The answer to that question is at this point, no. On December 23, 2024, The American Relief Act of 2025, was signed by President Biden, and did not include an extension. Therefore, the relief allowing first dollar coverage of telehealth and other remote services expires for plan years beginning in 2025.

Employers with calendar year plans, who offer HSA compatible high deductible health plans, will want to think through a wait and see approach or, to ensure HSA-eligibility, the fair market value of telehealth services will need to be charged until the minimum statutory deductible has been satisfied. If fair market value cannot be determined another option might be to allow no telehealth or other remote services prior to meeting the HSA statutory deductible. If the telehealth or remote services qualify as preventive, of course the services can be provided at low or no cost. A non-calendar year plan may have some time before a decision needs to be made.

There is strong bipartisan support for this issue, and there is optimism that when Congress returns in 2025, they will address this issue and possibly could make an extension retroactive to January 1, 2025. We do not know at this point how this will play out; employers will want to keep an eye on future action that either reinstates the permissive standard temporarily or makes it permanent.

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