for younger people who already get insurance through their work, can they also open a health savings account by paying for the cheapest high deductible plan they can find (and never using it since they have work insurance)? if this is done and this person switches over to a non-hsa insurance when older, can the health savings account funds later be used to pay for the expenses of a non-high deductible account (like medicare's standard plan)?

To qualify to contribute to an HSA, your only health insurance must be a high-deductible plan. So if someone gets a traditional health insurance product through an employer, that person can't purchase a second high-deductible plan and contribute to an HSA based on that plan.

If you are reasonably healthy, why not see if your employer will offer you access to a high deductible plan.

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