ABLE Act
The Achieving Better Life Experience (ABLE) Act of 2014 created tax-free savings accounts for people with disabilities who acquired their disability before the age of 26. The ABLE Age Adjustment Act (S. 331 and H.R. 1219) would change the age of onset criteria from age 26 to 46. According to the ABLE National Resource Center, "passage of this legislation would allow an additional 6 million or more people with disabilities [to] become eligible to open an ABLE account. This critical legislation would increase the financial security of people across the spectrum of disabilities without jeopardizing their much-needed public benefits."
ABLE Refresher: The money saved in ABLE accounts can be used to pay for qualified disability-related expenses such as education, housing, employment training, assistive technology, and transportation. An ABLE account is similar to a college savings ("529") account because the earnings in an ABLE account and distributions from the account for qualified disability expenses do not count as taxable income. Also, money saved in an ABLE account will not impact eligibility for Medicaid and other public benefits. ABLE accounts are meant to supplement and do not replace private insurance, Medicaid, or Supplemental Security Income (SSI) benefits. Before ABLE accounts, most people with disabilities who utilize public benefits did not have a way to save more than $2000. Read more about the ABLE Act and the ABLE Age Adjustment Act.
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