Additionally, a number of Internet web sites offer interactive worksheets for the calculation. An MSA account may only be accessed if the participant remains in a qualified MSA plan. If someone were to move to an employer with no MSA, money in the account could only be withdrawn without penalty after the individual became 65. An employer may start an MSA if it has 50 or fewer employees. It can maintain the plan only until number of employees exceeds 200.
Companies growing beyond that point have one year to discontinue the plan.
One final downside is that this is still an experimental program. In the year 2000, the Treasury Department will assess the effectiveness and participation of MSAs in conjunction with their impact on Federal revenues. Internal Revenue Service statistics indicate that only about 68,000 plans now exist. The reasons are open to speculation. It appears, however, to be mainly a matter of publicity.