Communications Workers of America
Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi,Decatur,Georgia30032 Alabama,Florida,Georgia 3516 Covington Highway
June 9, 2016
TO: District 3 Administrative Directors, Staff, and AT&T SE Local Presidents
FROM: Nicholas E.M. Hawkins, Assistant to the Vice President
SUBJ: AT&T Healthcare Plan – Option #2 – HSA
Over the last few weeks we have received several inquiries about the availability of HSAs (Health Savings Accounts) to our members who have elected participation in the AT&T Southeast Healthcare Plan Option #2. The following is an explanation of how this process works for our members.
The AT&T Southeast Healthcare Plan Option #2 is a low premium/high deductible healthcare plan available to our members. Participation in this plan qualifies our members, under federal guidelines, for participation in an HSA. An HSA is a trust or custodial account set up with a qualified HSA trustee to pay or reimburse certain medical expenses you may incur. A qualified HSA trustee can be a bank, an insurance company, or anyone already approved by the IRS to be a trustee of IRAs (Individual Retirement Accounts). In 2015 bargaining, we were not successful in securing access to an HSA through Fidelity that would allow for pre-tax payroll deductions. Our members who participate in the AT&T Southeast Healthcare Plan Option #2 can open an HSA (Health Savings Account) through a local bank, credit union, or any other qualified HSA trustee but their participation would be post-tax. To manage tax implications, our members should discuss participation in an HSA with their tax preparer. If you have any questions, please feel free to contact Anne Strickland at es7769@att.com.
cc: R. Honeycutt, Vice President B. Lester, Administrative Director
T. Dunlap, Administrative Director
J. Quinn, District Counsel