Legislation continues savings support for Michiganders with disabilities
State Rep. Sharon MacDonell (D-Troy) speaks in support of House Bill 5781 on June 20, 2024, in the Anderson House Office Building.
LANSING, Mich., Dec. 5, 2024 — State Rep. Sharon MacDonell’s (D-Troy) House Bill 5781 passed the Michigan House of Representatives today. This bill would update the Michigan Achieving a Better Life Experience (MiABLE) program to take advantage of federal rule changes allowing the program to expand. MiABLE is Section 529 tax-free savings program which allows individuals with disabilities and their families to save money without exceeding the asset threshold for Medicaid and Social Security Disability Insurance. After the bill’s passage, MacDonell issued the following statement:
“Making more Michiganders with disabilities eligible for this program is a top priority of mine. By passing this bill today, we are one step closer to expanding MiABLE and allowing more Michiganders with disabilities to use it.
“Under this bill, over 500,000 disabled individuals and their families in Michigan will be eligible for the MiABLE program. This expansion will help so many disabled individuals and their families when it comes to covering things such as education, housing, and transportation needs.
“MiABLE helps supplement other programs that help disabled individuals, not replace them — supporting disabled individuals so they are able to succeed in our state. Losing access to Medicaid or Social Security should not be the price of saving for other necessary expenses, and storing savings in a MiABLE account prevents this. This is a wonderful program, and I look forward to it helping many more people.”
Fore more information on MiABLE, please visit the program’s website here.
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