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delayed by the prior authorization process.

Health Savings Account Balances Increased In 2021

Despite health care expenditures increasing in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic, average HSA balances increased during 2021. In addition, the majority of accountholders contributed more than they withdrew, according to the Employee Benefit Research Institute.

Among EBRI’s findings:

Medicare Advantage plans

vices in whole or in part in 2021. That’s about 6% of the 35 million requests submitted on behalf of enrollees that year, a KFF analysis found.

Only about 11% of denials of prior authorization requests were appealed, the analysis finds. However, of the appeals that were filed, the vast majority (82%) resulted in fully or partially overturning the initial denial.

The KFF study said the high rate of successful appeals raises questions about whether a larger share of the initial prior authorization requests should have been approved. Alternatively, it could reflect problems with documentation that were subsequently rectified during the appeal. In either case, medical care ordered by physicians or other practitioners ulti mately deemed necessary by the insurers was potentially

» Accounts that received an employer contribution saw higher total contributions. However, accountholders who received that employer contribution were more likely to take more frequent and larger distributions.

» Most accountholders took a distribution in 2021. More than half of HSAs in the EBRI database saw a distribution in 2021, and the average distribution was $1,786.

» Older accountholders tended to have higher average contributions and higher average balances than younger

SOURCE: Elevance Health