Pursuant to § 38.2-5601 C.(*1) of the Code of Virginia, and on behalf of the State Corporation Commission, the Bureau of Insurance (Bureau) submits this report on the availability of high deductible health plans in Virginia that are used in conjunction with health savings accounts.(*2)

Twenty-two companies offered these plans for use with health savings accounts in Virginia at year-end 2021. While there were 3,000 fewer policies sold from year-end 2020 to year-end 2021, the number of Virginians covered (i.e., total lives covered) increased by 4,000.

The Bureau has not identified any state statutory or regulatory barriers to the sale of high deductible health plans that would restrict their attractiveness to Virginians. As a result, it has no recommended statutory or regulatory changes to the Virginia Health Savings Account Plan.(*3)
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(*1) C. The Plan shall include a report by the (State Corporation) Commission on the availability of high deductible health plans, as defined in § 223 (c) (2) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended, in the Commonwealth.
(*2) Under federal law, 26 USC § 223(d)(1), the term “health savings account" means a trust created or organized in the United States as a health savings account exclusively for the purpose of paying the qualified medical expenses of the account beneficiary,
(*3) § 38.2-5601 B, Code of Virginia: “The Virginia Health Savings Account Plan shall, consistent with federal law authorizing the establishment and use of health savings accounts, identify measures by private and public entities that will increase the utilization and efficacy of health savings accounts by the Commonwealth's residents, employers, and providers of health care coverage. The Plan shall include recommendations for legislation that would increase the attractiveness of health savings accounts or eliminate barriers to their use…."