Health savings accounts evolved out of medical savings accounts introduced in the 1990s

Health savings accounts are designed to alleviate upfront costs for high-deductible health plans

High-deductible insurance plans often have low monthly premiums, but require policyholders to meet a set spending threshold on medical expenses each year before the insurance kicks in. Health savings accounts give high-deductible plan holders a tax-free savings account to balance the high upfront costs that come with an HDHP.

As healthcare costs have increased post-COVID, critics have been skeptical about the real impact HSAs/FSAs have had in alleviating medical expenses

Health savings accounts and flexible spending accounts are designed to be tax-advantaged ways for people to save money on healthcare and medical expenses. But one recent study found that HSAs can increase families' total out-of-pocket spending on healthcare by more than $500 per year.

Flexible spending accounts are operated by employers

Unlike health savings accounts, which can be opened at banks and credit unions, FSAs are employer-owned and operated—meaning you can only access an FSA through an employer benefit, and the account doesn't follow you if you move jobs. To use an FSA to pay for a medical service or product, purchases typically have to be uploaded, approved, and then employees can be reimbursed.

HSA spending spikes early in the year, while FSA spending peaks in December

Because health savings accounts are designed to alleviate high upfront costs for people with high deductible health plans, the majority of HSA spending happens early in the year. However, around 10% of flexible spending account funds are used in December—right before the use it or lose it deadline.

Trump's 2025 'One Big Beautiful Bill Act' expanded access to health savings accounts

After the "One Big Beautiful Bill" took effect, Medicare users with bronze or catastrophic level health plans, as well as certain medical care membership models and telehealth users, became eligible for HSAs. Supporters of HSAs say expanding access to this savings program is more effective in alleviating high consumer costs than subsidizing healthcare plans or direct treatments.

HSAs are frequently criticized for exacerbating inequality in healthcare access

Health savings accounts offer large tax advantages, but require personal contributions. Some argue that the tax advantages benefit wealthy individuals more than anyone else and that HSAs don't do much to help people who can't afford to regularly contribute to one. As a result, HSAs only decrease costs for those who can comfortably invest in them, and health inequalities between high-income and low-income individuals are exacerbated.

HSAs are triple-tax advantaged—offering tax-free contributions, investments, and withdrawals

One of the reasons HSAs are so popular is the plan's triple-tax advantage. All contributions to an HSA happen pretax, funds in the HSA can be invested in stocks, bonds, or exchange-traded funds, and withdrawals to cover medical expenses are tax-free.

Watch a breakdown of tax breaks most Americans don't know about

Programs like healthcare savings accounts or flexible spending accounts are tax-free accounts that are designed to help lower healthcare costs. However, many Americans don't use them and don't understand how they work.

SAFE is a financial tool that stands for ‘simple agreement for future equity’

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The Depression-era Social Security program assigned every US citizen an account number

Many of the Social Security functions we know today are the result of multiple amendments to the Social Security Act that have been passed in the years since the act’s initial creation in 1935. As Social Security as we know it today was being conceptualized, Democrats opted to make it an insurance program rather than a welfare one to assuage Republicans.

American Express created 'Small Business Saturday' in 2010

As small businesses across the US were still reeling from the Great Recession, American Express came up with the idea of "Small Business Saturday" to help drive consumer spending to small businesses. Small Business Saturday is the day after Black Friday. In 2011, the Senate passed a resolution supporting Small Business Saturday, and, since then, it's become nationally recognized.

In 2019, Congress passed the Secure Act to reform key aspects of the US tax code

Key Secure Act provisions included raising the age at which mandatory distributions take effect (to increase saving), allowing larger catch-up contributions for older individuals, and allowing employers to directly match contributions in a Roth 401(k).

Mutual funds were first created and sold in the US in 1924

Mutual funds were created in 1924, became popular in the '80s and '90s when investors saw a better payoff. Since then, they’ve evolved to be one of the most popular investment options today.

The health food industry grew significantly in the early 1990s

By 1996, there were over 6,000 health food stores in the US, which generated over $9B in sales. That was still a small number compared to traditional supermarkets, but it was a 17% improvement in annual growth over the previous five years, highlighting a rapidly growing industry.

Sovereign wealth funds in the Middle East and Asia surged after the 2008 financial crisis

As the stock market plummeted in 2008, SWFs with cash on hand were able to snap up critically undervalued assets that eventually posted large profits. The Government of Singapore Investment Corp. and Abu Dhabi Investment Authority invested $14.4B in Citigroup, resulting in a $1.6B profit for the GSIC when it sold half of the holdings in 2009.

While the first exchange-traded fund (a 'basket' of different assets that can be bought and sold on a stock exchange) in the US only launched in 1993, the global ETF market has grown to more than $10T in the short time since.

Medicare vs. Medicaid explained in 60 seconds

Medicare and Medicaid both provide government-funded healthcare but serve different groups. Medicare, launched in 1965, covers those 65 and over and has three parts: hospital stays (A), outpatient care (B), and prescriptions (D). Medicaid, funded by federal and state governments, supports low-income individuals, with eligibility varying by state.

WellHub is a startup serving roughly 4 million people in 11 countries, providing broad wellness benefits to employees

Valued at $2.4B in 2025, the company helps workers get gym access and meditation apps, in addition to basic healthcare. Listen to the founder of the company, Cesar Cevalho, explain how he scaled the company with Jeff Berman.

Singapore grew its homeownership rate from 27% to 90% in less than 30 years

That progress stemmed from Singapore's founding prime minister, Lee Kuan Yew. He used a three-pronged approach to the homeownership solution: create affordable housing; make financing readily available to people of all walks of life; and help people gather down payments.

The first H-1 visa was created in 1952

Congress established the original H-1 visa in 1952 through the Immigration and Nationality Act of 1952 to let US employers temporarily hire foreign professionals of "distinguished merit and ability" when qualified American workers were unavailable—a precursor to today's H-1B program.

Homes in areas increasingly prone to natural disasters often aren't covered by private insurance

Instead, they're often covered under insurance plans of last resort, known as FAIR (Fair Access to Insurance Requirements) plans. However, as more and more homes become covered by FAIR, the program is facing strain. This interactive visual helps explain the new problems FAIR is facing.

How dentistry evolved from carnival sideshow to respected medicine

The field, which has remained siloed from other medical care, also has a separate insurance system. This podcast walks through how and why dental insurance often remains capped at $1,500 primarily to cover cleanings, and it wouldn't cover catastrophes—unlike many other medical or housing insurance models.

A 1975 law let tribes run their own programs instead of relying on federal bureaucracies

The Indian Self-Determination and Education Assistance Act allowed tribes to contract directly with the federal government to administer their own health, education, and social services—reversing policies from the "termination era."

Health and population surveys from 90 countries

The Demographic and Health Surveys (DHS) Program collects, analyzes, and disseminates data on population, health, HIV, and nutrition. The site compiles data through more than 400 surveys in over 90 countries around the world. Explore demographic...

ATMs drastically expanded access to checking accounts in the 1960s

The invention disrupted the local bank industry, allowing customers to access cash around the clock and when out of town. The innovation also reduced the headcount needed for bank services and created a new revenue stream via ATM fees for noncustomers. This 50-year anniversary retrospective revisits the cash kiosk.

Mr. Money Mustache is a popular FIRE advocate and blogger

The Mr. Money Mustache blog was started in 2011, and was written by a man named Peter Adeney. It gained a significant following documenting real people’s experiences trying out FIRE, and also helped popularize the concept.

Hedge funds, the private investment firms that trade a wide swath of financial assets, make money by imposing steep fees on investors and from the fund's investment performance.

Calculate how much of your tax dollars go to each federal program based on your income, filing status, and number of children

Telehealth demand for GLP-1s for weight loss is booming as consumers seek easier access.

Experimental hantavirus vaccines and therapies, still under development, have long been funded by the US military.

'Shogun,' a 1980s TV series, helped popularize sushi in the US by stimulating an American interest in Japanese culture.

Jimmy Carter signed a 1978 bill that legalized home brewing, a move credited with kick-starting the craft beer industry.

SpaceX's S-1 or 'prospectus' revealed many previously unknown details about the company, including its unprofitability despite doing $18.7B in revenue in 2025, exactly how many voting shares Elon Musk will have in the company (roughly 85%), and more.

Sears sold DIY house kits starting at $600 in its famous catalog from 1908 through the 1940s, resulting in roughly 10,000 'Sears and Roebuck houses' being built.

The word 'jazz' evolved from 'jasm,' 19th-century American slang for 'energy'

The American Society of Civil Engineers' infrastructure report card gave the US a C in 2025, its highest grade since the project launched in 1998.

US housing costs have risen by roughly 175% between 1991 and 2026—but a growing number of Gen Zers are becoming homeowners anyway. In 2025, 4% of homebuyers were Gen Z, up from 3% the year before.

Despite being favored by 87% of Americans, Congress does not have term limits.

About 2,000 US babies are born annually without some portion of their limbs, potentially leading to a lifetime of pricey prosthetics.

Take a 3D tour of the Hajj, Islam's annual pilgrimage to Mecca, undertaken by over 1.5 million Muslims.

In 2026, Finland was named the world's happiest country for the ninth consecutive year based on its wealth, social safety network, and high life expectancy, among other factors.

Up to a million Girl Scouts sell about 200 million cookie boxes every spring, generating $800 million, largely because refusing a child is frowned upon

20,000 letters to the advice columnist 'Dear Abby' provide insight into prevailing sex, religion, and LGBTQ fears, anxieties, and concerns from the 1950s onward.

The US first hosted the World Cup in 1994, a tournament that lives in soccer infamy for its poor planning and the murder of Colombian player Andres Escobar, who'd accidentally scored on his own net.

'Silent' fireworks have gained more interest in recent years as a quieter celebratory option.

Legendary architect Frank Lloyd Wright designed the SC Johnson headquarters in Wisconsin, aiming to make a cathedral-like workplace

The first steps to rebuilding your credit score include getting to know exactly what's on your credit report and figuring out how far you are from the '700 club,' or 'good score' range.

A 2019 Facebook event called on attendees to "Storm Area 51, They Can't Stop All of Us," resulting in countless memes, the creation of a music festival, and eventually the arrests of those who did try to approach the area.

Fear or disgust related to clusters of holes and cracks, called trypophobia, may stem from evolutionary processes to help us avoid pathogens.

SpongeBob exemplifies Aristotle's philosophy for living well because he understands that happiness doesn't come from external factors like money, recognition, or power.