Wal-Mart May Offer HSA Plan

A large retailer often accused of skimping on health benefits may be adding a high-deductible health insurance plan.[@@]

Wal-Mart Inc., Bentonville, Ark., in January will introduce a high-deductible, health savings account-compatible plan that could cost as little as $25 per month for individual employees and $65 per month for employees who want family coverage, according to a report in today’s New York Times.

Employee contribution rates would be at least 40% lower than the contributions for the plan that now covers about half of Wal-Mart’s 1.2 million employees, according to the Times.

The plan reportedly will include some coverage for preventive care, but it also will include a $25,000-per-member cap on health benefits during the first year that a member belongs to the plan.