HSA Employer Administration Guide - Optum

HSA Employer Administration Guide

Table of contents

(Throughout this document, anything that is bold blue is a link that you can click on.) Optum Financial overview 3 Enrollment methods 3

Employer portal 3 Batch with affirmation

Direct 4 Through medical eligibility system (UnitedHealthcare? clients only) 6 Online 7 Account opening process 8 Reporting 9 Employer best practices 10 Contribution methods11 Employer portal11 PPD ACH11 Combined sum ACH or wire11 Employee-initiated contributions12 Payroll deduction12 Online....................................................................................................................................... 12 Check12 Health accounts education suite12 Account holder statements13 Tax forms13 Frequently asked questions13

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Optum Financial overview

Thank you for choosing Optum Financial?. Optum Bank, Member FDIC, a subsidiary of Optum Financial, administers more than 5 million health savings accounts (HSAs)*. This guide is intended to help you set up your HSA and ensure a smooth transition and high enrollment in your HSA-qualifying health plan. We have also included links to additional resources to help you and your employees get the best possible value from your plan.

We offer the highest level of service to all our clients, from small employer groups to Fortune 500 companies. We partner with most medical insurance carriers and if your health plan needs change, you can retain Optum Bank as the HSA administrator.

If you have any questions or comments, please contact our Broker Employer Service Team (BEST) by phone at 1-866-988-2006, Monday through Friday, 8 a.m. to 7 p.m. Eastern time. You can also email us at HSAgroup@. We will respond to your email within two business days.

Enrollment methods

Optum Financial offers three enrollment options -- two that are employer facilitated and one that is employee initiated. Review each method and select the one that makes the most sense for you and your employees.

Enrollment method

Description

Employer size

1. Employer portal

Employer-facilitated enrollment through a portal.

Most popular with small and mid-size employers

2. Batch enrollment

Employer-facilitated enrollment through a batch file.

Most popular with large employers

3. Online enrollment

Employee-initiated enrollment. Employers should provide employees with enrollment link and employer group number.

Most popular with small and mid-size employers

Method 1: Employer portal

At , benefit managers and administrators can manage the HSA enrollment process online. This method is used commonly by mid-size and small employers. The portal allows the benefit manager to view active accounts tied to their group, enroll individuals and submit funds for active accounts.

*Based on HSA book of business as of June 30, 2021.

Boost HSA participation

Motivate your eligible employees to open an HSA and deposit health care dollars. During the enrollment period, your employees are more likely to focus on understanding changes and making benefits decisions, not on how to access and use their health care services and benefits when they need them. As you guide your employees through the process, keep reminding them of the benefits of opening and funding an account and the importance of saving enough money in their HSA to cover their health plan deductible and coinsurance.

Important note

Optum Financial can provide information on general HSA rules and the daily logistics for your accounts only. You are encouraged to contact a tax advisor for questions related to your specific situation. Optum Financial cannot provide tax advice.

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The employer or third-party enrollment vendor becomes a service provider for Optum Financial. Service providers must sign an agreement with Optum Financial in which they agree to: 1. Obtain employees' acceptance of an authorized agent agreement 2. Fulfill all requirements for electronic signature compliance 3. Maintain safeguards to protect the confidentiality of employee data

Employer requirements During the enrollment process, you must: 1. Display/distribute the authorized agent agreement to employees 2. Capture employees' affirmation to the authorized agent agreement

in accordance with the signature requirements 3. Agree to terms and conditions during each enrollment session

Employee requirements Your employees must affirm to open an HSA with Optum Financial by reviewing and agreeing to the Optum Financial authorized agent agreement.

How to enroll your employees through the employer portal

You will receive an email invitation to register on . After completing the registration, you can enroll employees within the employer portal. For information on how to register for this tool, please see the employer portal registration guide. Once signed in to the website, you can begin to enroll individuals by selecting the "Enroll Participant" link under the "Manage Participants" tab.

The below information is required for each individual opening an account

Required

? Full name

? Date of birth

? Residence address

? HDHP start date

? Social Security number

Optional

? Home and work phone number

? Email address

? HDHP Member ID # ? Additional

card holder

After entering the information in the corresponding prompts, a review screen will appear asking you to continue or enter additional enrollments. Once all applications have been entered, you will be prompted to review and accept the terms and conditions for HSA enrollments.

Helpful tip: When entering a large number of enrollments, submit in batches to ensure data is saved periodically.

Method 2a: Batch enrollment with affirmation -- direct

The direct batch enrollment with affirmation process allows you, or a third party, to submit an electronic data file to Optum Financial to open your employees' HSAs on their behalf. This method is most popular with larger employer groups.

Offer payroll contributions with tax advantages

Employers that do not allow payroll deductions typically see only 10-15% of employees contribute to their HSA, leaving account balances far short of deductibles. Allowing your employees to make contributions through pretax payroll deductions is an effortless way to increase HSA contributions. Pre-tax payroll contributions also provide immediate federal and, in some instances, state income and FICA tax savings to your employees while reducing your payroll tax burden.*

*Most states do not tax HSA contributions, with the exceptions of California and New Jersey where HSA contributions are taxed. This information is subject to change. Please consult your tax/financial professional or consult your state department of revenue for more information.

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If you are an employer interested in using the direct batch with affirmation enrollment method, please contact our Broker Employer Service Team (BEST) by phone at 1-866-988-2006, Monday through Friday, 8 a.m. to 7 p.m. Eastern time or email us at HSAgroup@ and ask for assistance. A member of the team will engage an HSA implementation project manager to begin the set-up process. Please be sure to include your contact information with your request.

Becoming a service provider of Optum Financial: The employer or third-party enrollment vendor becomes a service provider for Optum Financial. Service providers must sign an agreement with Optum Financial in which they agree to:

1. Obtain employees' acceptance of an authorized agent agreement 2. Fulfill all requirements for electronic signature compliance 3. Maintain safeguards to protect the confidentiality of employee data

Employer requirements: 1. Sign and return the HSA enrollment and contribution agreement 2. Display/distribute an authorized agent agreement to employees 3. Capture employees' affirmation to the authorized agent agreement

in accordance with the signature requirements 4. C apture all data required for Optum Financial to open an HSA, as

specified in the batch file layout 5. Transmit the batch file to Optum Financial via Secure File Transfer

Protocol (SFTP) transmission

Employee requirements: Affirm to open an HSA with Optum Financial by reviewing and agreeing to the authorized agent agreement.

Optum Financial assumption of data integrity and accuracy

Optum Financial assumes that data provided by a client and/or third party processor vendor is accurate and intended for production processing, when data is submitted through a production channel or is marked as production by the sender.

Optum Financial is not responsible for processing data that is submitted erroneously by the client and/or third party processor/ vendor. Furthermore, the client and/or third party processor/vendor are responsible for adhering to the information provided in Optum Financial file specification documentation.

For answers to common employer questions around the HSA enrollment and contribution agreement, view the Custodial Services Q&A.

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