© 2026
Play Live Radio
Next Up:
0:00
0:00
0:00 0:00
Available On Air Stations
The new WAMC app is available to download on iOS and Android! Click here to learn more.

Medical Savings

The main issue that's been holding up the Kassebaum-Kennedy health insurance bill is medical savings accounts, which allow people to set up tax-free savings accounts for medical care. Republicans want MSAs in the bill and have settled on a plan...they are now in negotiations with the White House for approval. NPR's Joanne Silberner looks at why MSAs are such a contentious issue, whether they'll sink the health system or save it by making consumers more cost-conscious.

Copyright 1996 NPR