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OPINION:

America doesn’t have a health care access problem; it has an affordability crisis. Unfortunately, federal laws stand between lower-cost health care coverage and families desperate for a break.

Although 92% of Americans have health coverage, nearly half of adults say it is difficult to afford care. More than one-third report skipping or delaying treatment because of cost.

The financial strain is intensifying. Health care costs are rising three times faster than wages, consuming a growing share of household budgets and threatening to crowd out other essential expenses.

This year, employers project a 10% increase in worker health benefits costs, and some or all of that will come from employee paychecks.

If policymakers are serious about lowering costs, then they should focus on one of the most effective, consumer-empowering tools already available: health savings accounts.

HSAs are accounts that live side-by-side with health insurance. About 67 million Americans currently use HSA funds for cost-sharing, such as co-payments at the doctor’s office or health care not covered by an insurer.

Unlike most Obamacare plans, where the average deductible is now $5,300, HSAs allow people to “fill in” their insurance obligations and pay for care at a discount, turning them from “renters” of health coverage into “owners” of their health care.

HSAs work because they address the affordability problem at its core. Instead of routing dollars through insurers and middlemen, they give patients direct control over tax-free funds to pay for care. The result is a system that rewards consumers, not insurance companies.

It gives families a way to manage everyday expenses and unexpected medical bills by making care and coverage less expensive.

Despite their clear advantages, HSAs remain out of reach for millions of Americans. Federal law requires HSAs to have a minimum deductible, currently $1,700 for an individual, and health insurance that provides no coverage before the deductible is met.

The average employer plan has a $1,929 deductible before coverage starts for many services. Those plans, however, often cover preventive care and help with ongoing chronic conditions without requiring patients to pay a deductible first.

Because of outdated statutory restrictions, millions of Americans are precluded from having both an HSA and an employer plan, leaving them stuck with high deductibles and unable to contribute to an HSA.

That is why a growing coalition of patient advocates, employers and taxpayer groups, including the Council for Affordable Health Coverage, is rallying behind the “HSAs for All” approach.

A bill introduced by Rep. Aaron Bean, Florida Republican, would give up to 150 million additional Americans access to HSAs through their employer or Obamacare health care plan. It would provide families with a proven tool to lower their costs and better manage medical expenses.

The solution is straightforward: Modernize the rules, expand access and let every American benefit from a tool we already know works.

As the president of the Council for Affordable Health Coverage, I, along with my coalition members, have long endorsed reforms to broaden HSA eligibility and flexibility, emphasizing that current law blocks access to HSAs for too many people and drives up costs.

We are not the only ones who see the promise of HSAs. President Trump’s “Great Healthcare Plan” places HSAs at the center of its affordability strategy, proposing to deliver health care dollars directly to individuals rather than filtering them through layers of insurance bureaucracy.

This reflects a broader truth about health care reform. For decades, policymakers have tried to improve affordability by adding complexity: more mandates, subsidies and middlemen. Yet costs have continued to climb.

HSAs offer a different approach, one rooted in simplicity and ownership. When patients control their health care dollars, they demand value. When value matters, prices come down.

Expanding HSAs to all Americans would not solve every challenge in the system, but it would directly address the one problem that matters most to families: cost. It would lower premiums, reduce tax burdens and give individuals discounts on routine care and major medical expenses.

If Washington is serious about making health care affordable again, then it should start by giving Americans control over their own health care dollars. HSAs — for all — do exactly that.

• Joel White is president of the Council for Affordable Health Coverage.