[sailfast]

Right, but you also benefit from the fact that it's an HDHP, right? Must you be on an HDHP (because the other plan is too expensive, or because another plan is not offered) or did you choose the HDHP even when presented with the options?

The big up-front deductible and an HSA is pretty much the point of the plan, and it's mostly advantageous to those that are young and/or don't have to go to the doctor that often, with a max downside of their deductible + catastrophic.

EDITL To be clear, I also believe significant reform is required, but there is also a lot of misunderstanding about how plans work which is not helping. The whole industry is extremely opaque.

[CydeWeys]

The HDHP works out in years in which you need no medical treatment beyond the covered annual physical. Once you start needing anything, it ends up being a worse option. I discovered this a few years ago when I broke my ankle.

The big upfront deductible seems like exactly the wrong way to structure a healthcare plan, as it disincentives getting treatment until things get really bad.

[sailfast]

True, but if you can offset that with an HSA to cover your entire deductible and sweep the rest into a qualifying retirement plan it makes a lot of sense _and_ you don't have to worry as much about the deductible. Note: I am on a typical PPO and optimizing for minimum catastrophic amounts, generally so this is not the way I usually go but many colleagues seem to like these plans