Employer HDHP vs PPO – what’s the catch?

Hello,

We have our first newborn on the way in November. I'm in the process of looking at my employer's medical plans to gauge if it makes sense to change our plan once the baby is born. My understanding is that the baby will frequent the doctor's office for check ups and potential for sickness. Currently, my wife and I are on the HDHP + HSA PPO plan and we have met our annual out of pocket maximum.

The two main options we're considering is if we should go with the traditional PPO or stay on our HSA HDHP PPO plan. As I have been looking at the medical plans, I find it hard to justify transitioning to the non HSA PPO plan. Here's the high level breakdown:

HDHP + HSA PPO PPO Premium $2,000 $5,200 Annual Deductible $3,350 $1,500 Employer Contribution $1,500 N/A Annual OOP Max $5,000 $6,000

Obviously, the amount paid differs for office visits, urgent care, emergency room, etc. But if the bottom line is the annual OOP, what's the catch here? If my naive understanding is correct, the estimated cost would be less for the HDHP + HSA PPO, correct?

submitted by /u/ireadit10
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