Glenn English: “in 1996 Congress provided patients with options to save for their health care needs and manage their own health care…”

“in 1996 Congress provided patients with options to save for their health care needs and manage their own health care needs by creating medical savings accounts. But certain limitations placed on those accounts never allowed patients to fully realize the promise of MSAs. Today, I urge my colleagues to make those accounts permanent and repeal the limitations put on them by supporting this amendment, this pro-consumer amendment. This amendment allows any size company to offer MSAs and also allows individuals to purchase MSAs, giving more people the power to choose the health care professionals, services and products that best meet their needs as individuals. It allows MSAs to be offered under cafeteria plans that will greatly expand the number of consumers that can be reached by MSAs and treat MSAs like other health care plans. Many insurers have been reluctant to offer medical savings accounts because the cap limits the size of the market in which MSAs can be offered. We would repeal that cap. That is fundamentally pro-consumer legislation.”