This Is News?

"MP3 Players Might Harm Hearing"

Yeah, and vuvuzelas just might do the same thing. I suppose it's noteworthy that the researchers found that hearing was temporarily harmed by listening to an MP3 player at high volume, which I assume leads to louder and louder playing volume and further damage. Then, after 30 years, the iPod generation(s?) will be completely deaf.

If you own an iPod, you might consider setting the max volume at a level that does not hurt your ears, even in quiet surroundings. Then you can be assured that you won't destroy your hearing when you're listening to your music on the plane or at the gym. This is how it is done -

-Settings
-Volume Limit
-Use Clickwheel to set maximum volume
-If you're doing it on your punk kid's iPod, you can even set a combination, or just click "Done."

HSAs Are Going Through Changes

And they're not good ones. This was emailed to me by a Unitedhealthcare South Florida account executive -

As expected, the IRS recently released that there are not going to be any changes on HSA limits in 201l.  These limits include:

Maximum Contribution:

     $3,050 Individual

     $6,150 Family

HDHP Maximum Out-of-Pocket:

     $5,950 Individual

     $11,900 Family

HDHP Minimum Deductible:

     $1,200 Individual

     $2,400 Family

An additional catch-up contribution of $1,000 is available to account holders ages 55 and older.

There are also 2 provisions of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act that are scheduled to take effect in 2011, unless Congress changes them:

1) The tax penalty on HSA withdrawals not used for qualified medical expenses will be increased from the current 10% penalty to 20%.

2) Expenses for OTC medications (other than insulin) will not be eligible for payment or reimbursement from HSAs or other types of consumer-directed health accounts, unless they are obtained with a prescription.

For additional details, please refer to the IRS document at http://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-drop/rp-10-22.pdf

The 2nd provision is a real shame. It was really easy to pay for something at the drug store that was eligible to be paid with HSA dollars. All you had to do was use your card like you would any other debit or credit card. Drugstores had even begun noting on the receipt which of your purchases were covered.