Morningstar® released their 2019 take on the HSA marketplace last week, which evaluated 11 HSA providers on their potential appeal to individuals looking to open an HSA. The report is based upon both publicly available information and responses submitted by providers as of 10/1/2019 (previous iterations had looked at 9/30/2018 and 5/31/2017 data).
Morningstar® scored each HSA product from an individual account holder’s point of view, both as a spending and investing vehicle, aggregating marks to give providers an overall score out of 12. New additions to the report included Fidelity, while BenefitWallet was removed from consideration.
While the report’s framework remained largely consistent with prior reports, methodologies used to evaluate several facets have evolved. As a result, many HSA providers received differing scores compared to previous years, despite offering products that are substantially unchanged.
Several criteria related to fees and information transparency remained points of emphasis. However, the report’s view on best-practices related to investments and menu design continue to be dynamic. The report indicates that menu designs have generally improved over time and a result they have “raised the bar” for receiving a positive score.
While great to see continued focus on the HSA marketplace, we believe there continues to be room for growth in the scope of the reports’ grading system. In particular, we would like to see more evaluation of the industry’s investment in value-based solutions, including technology applications (robo-solutions, tools, smart communications, etc.). These investments can greatly enhance the appeal of HSAs and appear to be a top priority for many providers.