The Catch: Is Rick Santorum Your Friend?

Rick Santorum may be the Republican presidential contender who has done the most to help health insurance companies start and expand the health savings account (HSA) program.

Wendell Potter, a former health insurance company public relations executive who now writes for the Center for Public Integrity, Washington, and loathes HSAs, talks about Santorum’s relationship with HSAs in a new column.

Federal law makes the HSA program available to taxpayers who buy HSA-compatible health insurance policies with deductibles above a minimum level and below a maximum level.

Advocates argue that the HSA program turns consumers into health care cost-cutting activists by encouraging them to do a better job of shopping for health care and managing their own health.

Potter argues that, in the real world, “the savings accounts associated with these plans have become appealing tax shelters for Americans who can afford to put money into them each year.”

Even many Americans with HSAs can’t afford to put any money into the accounts, Potter says.

Santorum backed the 2003 law that created the program, and he also was a co-sponsor of the Health Coverage for the Uninsured Act of 2005, Potter says.

The 2005 bill would have created “refundable” tax credits that people with low incomes could have used to buy high-deductible coverage from a private insurance company.

Potter notes that health insurers have been some of the biggest contributors to Santorum’s Senate campaigns.