Achieving A Better Life (Joe Young)

As I’m sure most of you know by now, I have a soft spot for disabled individuals. I have mentioned this in at least two of my previous posts so I apologize if I’m starting to sound like a broken record. However, if you give me just a little bit more of your time I promise it’ll be quick and painless, and you may even learn something.

The topic of this post is going to be the creation of the Achieving a Better Life Experience (ABLE) Act, and the benefits that it will bring to the developmentally disabled community. This Act is truly something to be celebrated, as it will ease some of the financial strains that many disabled people and their families undergo.

WHAT:

The ABLE Act was made an official law on December 19, 2014. The law allows disabled citizens to open a tax-free savings account, which allows them to save money for “qualified disability expenses.” 

Some of these expenses include:

• Education
• Housing
• Transportation
• Assistive technology
• Personal support services
• Healthcare

 

WHY:

A question you might be asking yourself is, “What is the need for these accounts?” I know first hand that many families with disabled relatives rely heavily on public benefits due to the financial weight of these expenses. However, in order for one to be eligible for public benefits (SSI, Medicaid) they must first be rendered poor! (I may sound like I am over reacting, but I assure you, I am not.)

One of the major drawbacks of these benefits is that the individual receiving the benefits cannot accrue more than $2,000 in savings, retirement funds, or any other form of revenue. Let’s take a minute to think about that…

These disabled people who, more often than not are not able to provide for themselves, are denied basic rights if they receive or make more than $2,000 at any time. You don’t have to be a bleeding heart to see the issue with that…

WHO:

There aren’t many limitations to those who can apply for an ABLE account. The only regulation is that the individual applying for the account must have had their disability diagnosed before the age of 26. The individual may or may not receive public benefits; it does not affect their eligibility.

Parents with developmentally disabled children are also able to open an account for their children, as long as the same prerequisites are met.

Where/When:

As of December 2015, no state is offering ABLE accounts as many of them are still in the process of developing a program. Some states may have their programs running this year, but most are anticipated for 2017.

Individuals or their families will be able to apply for an account online.

Other Options:

There are other courses of action that a disabled person or his or her family may take in order to secure their finances. A Special Needs Trust (SNT) would be another option for people with special needs. However, an ABLE account is much more cost effective to establish, and the beneficiary of the account has more control over his or her finances than that of a SNT.

Emotional Stability:

The information that I have just laid out should be enough to convince you that the ABLE Act will have a positive impact on the disabled community. However, if the financial benefits are not enough to sway your opinion, then think about the weight that will be lifted off so many people’s shoulders when they know that they can financially prepare themselves, or their loved ones, for the future.

I saw an example of this when one of my clients came into work one day and told me about the passing of the ABLE Act. I had never heard of the ABLE Act before, and asked him to fill me in. He proceeded to tell me most of what I just told you. The difference, however, was the excitement on his face when he told me what the passing of this law meant to him. I couldn’t possibly imagine a better example of why the ABLE Act is a monumental achievement.