From the Indiana ABLE Authority and the Governor’s Council for People with Disabilities:
Recently, the U.S. government provided a $1,200 stimulus payment to individuals throughout the country as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. Many people may have already received their stimulus payments.
You may spend the money on whatever you would like. However, people who receive monthly Social Security benefits like SSI MUST spend their stimulus payment within 12 months. If you do not, it will count as an asset and could reduce your benefits.
There is another option, however. If you do not want or need to spend your stimulus payment now, you can put all or part of the money into an ABLE account. That way, you don’t have to worry about spending the money right away if you don’t need to.
What Is An ABLE Account?
Individuals with disabilities encounter challenges that many others don’t. To reduce these barriers, Congress enacted the Achieving a Better Life Experience (ABLE) Act of 2014 so states could create savings programs for people with disabilities. Indiana’s ABLE plan is called INvestABLE Indiana.
INvestABLE Indiana gives Hoosiers with disabilities the opportunity to open savings and investment accounts without affecting their eligibility for benefits like Medicaid or SSI. Before ABLE Accounts, people with disabilities had a limit of $2,000 on their resources. Now, you can use your INvestABLE Indiana ABLE Account to save beyond that limit without jeopardizing your benefits.
With your INvestABLE Indiana ABLE Account, you can save for things that aren’t covered by your benefits. You can save for whatever you need to be independent and participate in your community, like adaptive equipment, a vehicle, a home, assistive technology, personal support services, and many other expenses. Because you have the flexibility to use it when you need it, you can use your account to save for emergencies.
So, if you don’t need to spend your stimulus payment on things right now, you can save all or part of it in your INvestABLE Indiana ABLE Account. If you do not have an account, visit INvestABLE Indiana to set yours up today. It doesn’t take long, you can set one up with as little as $25 in your account, and your loved ones can even make a gift to you by depositing money into your account.
Who Is Eligible For An ABLE Account?
To be eligible for an ABLE account, one must have the onset of disability or blindness before age 26 and be receiving SSI or SSDI. If you are not receiving SSI or SSDI, you may still be eligible if you can provide a doctor’s diagnosis of significant functional impairment.
Ready To Learn More?
Learn more about INvestABLE Indiana here or participate in this free live webinar:
Wednesday, May 27
2:00 pm EST
RSVP here
Hosted by the Governor’s Council For People with Disabilities, this webinar will cover ABLE account basics, how to enroll, and information on how you can put all or part of your stimulus payment into an ABLE account.
