Employers Turn to 401(k)-Style Auto-Enrollment to Lift HSA Participation

According to CNBC, employers are increasingly using 401(k)-style automatic enrollment to boost worker participation in health savings accounts, with nearly 46% of employers automatically opting workers into an HSA in 2025 if they enrolled in a high-deductible health plan, up from 32% in 2019. The Plan Sponsor Council of America said about 64% of employers auto-enrolled workers into a 401(k) plan in 2025, while HSA Bank's Ann Brisk said relying on employees to open accounts on their own makes participation harder. The report also said about 77% of employers made an HSA contribution in 2025, and roughly 10% of those that contribute matched employee deposits, with another 7.5% considering it. High-deductible plans carry deductibles of at least $1,700 for individuals and $3,400 for families in 2026, and total worker and employer HSA contributions for self-only coverage cannot exceed $4,400, while the family limit is $8,750.