Health Care

HSA contribution

I am on Medicare. My wife & son are on a High Deductible Health plan thru Coloroado Market Place with an HSA. My wife contributed the maximum allowed to her HSA at the family level for TYs 2024 & 2025. Our tax person says she can only contribute at the individual level since I'm on Medicare and therefore must withdraw excess funds from the HSA (family - indiv amts). We find nothing in IRS Publ 969 to support this. Is my wife allowed to contribute at the family level?

Quick Answer:

Yes, your wife is generally allowed to contribute at the **family level**. According to IRS Publication 969, to be an "eligible individual" for HSA contributions, you must be covered under a High Deductible Health Plan (HDHP) and have no other disqualifying coverage (like Medicare). While **you** are not an eligible individual because you are on Medicare, your wife remains an eligible individual because she is covered under a family HDHP and has no disqualifying coverage of her own. Under the "Rules for Married People" in Publication 969, if **either** spouse has family HDHP coverage, both are treated as having family HDHP coverage. Because she has family-level coverage that includes at least one other person (your son) who is not on Medicare, she is entitled to the full family contribution limit. The fact that you are on Medicare only means that *your* portion of the contribution limit is zero; it does not reduce *her* ability to contribute the full family maximum to her own HSA, provided the HDHP covers at least one other person besides herself. If your son were not on the plan and it was only you and your wife, she would be limited to the individual rate. Since your son is covered, the family limit applies.

Note: This answer is provided for convenience only. It is important that you speak to a CPA about your individual tax situation.

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