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The Conservation of Disability Pity

In Chemistry, the “total energy of an enclosed system is constant”… there seems to be a similar principal for disability supports and services… the Conservation of Disability Pity – the total support in the disability system is constant.

ABLE Accounts

Case in point… the ABLE Account (the problems exist with other disability services and benefits as well). ABLE accounts are a savings and investment tool that allows disabled individuals (and others) to contribute money to an account that works pretty much like a ROTH IRA. The goal – “ease financial strains faced by individuals with disabilities”… but, does it?

ABLE Account Good News in 2026

Starting 1 January 2026, eligibility opens up to individuals whose disability occurred before age 46 (this is a substantial increase from the previous qualifying age of 26) AND the annual contribution maximum increased to $20,000 (from $19,000).

(NOTE – As I understand it, one of the reasons for raising the eligibility age was that enrollment in the program has been low nationally which has increased operational costs for the states that administer the programs)

There are a number of US programs that support disabled people and they interact with the ABLE account in curious ways.

Choose the right state – or else

You are only allowed to have one ABLE account (mostly). And most states allow you to join their ABLE account program. BUT you can’t do a real “rollover” from one state to another.

This is a problem.

ABLE programs vary wildly by state. The maximum account value ranges between $235,000 and $596.595. Contributions in some states are tax deductible.

And if a state’s rules change, you are kind of out of luck.

Working? You can contribute (kind of)

Part of the ABLE account is the option for a disabled individual to contribute more funds through “ABLE to Work”. This can be particularly helpful as disabled individuals often have jobs that do not provide a retirement program (and participating in those programs can create more income and resources that affect eligibility for disability services). But, because these resources DO count for eligibility for other programs, the net effect is if you are more disabled as defined by participating in programs like Medicaid or SSI, you won’t have the available funds to contribute to your ABLE account.

More Disabled? Less Savings

If you also qualify for / need Supplemental Security Income (you are more substantially disabled from the perspective of the US government)… you can only have a maximum of $100,000 in your ABLE account or it starts counting against your allowed resources for SSI (which are extremely low – $2000 for an individual, $3000 for a couple).

More Disabled? Medicaid Estate Recovery

Assets in your ABLE account are “first party” assets so they are subject to Medicaid “Estate Recovery” (more colorfully called “Claw back”)… so, if you are sufficiently disabled to qualify for and need Medicaid, a state government can come after your ABLE account (as well as any other assets owned in your name).

Some people choose not to use the ABLE account simply because of this threat.

(Easily) Qualified Disability Expenses with Government Oversight

ABLE account funds are supposed to be used for “Qualified Disability Expenses”… and the government can (and does) check. As a reminder, these are NOT government funds, they are those of a disabled individual or people who care about them. So, effectively, the government decides what will “ease financial strain” – it is not truly left up to the individual.

Rethinking the Disability Support Model

Were these mechanisms added to the ABLE account to punish disabled people?

I doubt it.

I suspect the choices were made implicitly by people with little understanding of what it is like to live in and use these systems or how they interact in practice.

We can move to a disability services model that unlocks the potential of disabled people and doesn’t actively disabled them further financially or in their full and equal participation in our society.

Re-looking at the ABLE Account

The ambition of the ABLE account is laudable. Some simple changes could make it more useful and accessible (and easier to manage) for all disabled people:

  • Exclude all ABLE account funds (and contributions) from consideration for eligibility or level of service for ANY government program. Especially from Medicaid Estate Recovery. This will make “ABLE to Work”… much more workable!
  • Allow real rollovers between state programs. Also, allow contributions to ANY state program up to the total annual maximum and total account maximum. Let’s see some competition and innovation between states (and better data on account returns… but that is another matter).
  • No oversight of ABLE account spending. It is all funds from the disabled individual or those who care about them… let them determine what will “ease the financial strain” of disability.
  • Look at some of the innovations at the state-level (such as deductible contributions) and implement them nationally.

A couple of lines in the law is all it will take to make these changes. Perhaps part of the reason there has been limited use of ABLE accounts is that the limitations make the account not helpful enough.

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