Category: ABLE Accounts
TMJ4.COM: Manufacturing a Brighter Future: West Allis company hires people on the autism spectrum
By SD Network, 2024-04-27
A manufacturing company in West Allis has found a great employee. Eric Gama, who is on the autism spectrum, has found his calling as a machine assistant at Allis Manufacturing. Allis Manufacturing has made a deliberate effort to provide people on the spectrum with meaningful job opportunities.
THE BADGER HERALD: New legislation to expand tax-advantaged savings account access for Wisconsinites with disabilities
By SD Network, 2024-04-27
Recently, Governor Evers signed a bill ordering the state’s Department of Financial Institutions to set up an ABLE program for residents or join one of the existing multi-state consortiums. ABLE accounts allow people with disabilities to save money for disability related expenses without losing their benefits. They are tax-free accounts. The Achieving a Better Life Experience Act was passed in Congress and signed by former President Barack Obama in 2014, and was the first piece of legislation which recognized the extra costs of living with a disability, according to the ABLE National Resource Center. Though the ABLE Act is a federal law, individual states are tasked with developing their own programs and the regulations and benefits specific to each program can vary depending on the jurisdiction, according to the ABLE National Resource Center.
Starting January 1st, people with disabilities are able to save more money in ABLE accounts which are accounts that allow them to save without jeopardizing their government benefits. The Internal Revenue Service increased the federal gift tax exclusion from $18,000. The new limit is up from $1,000 last year.
NATIONAL INSTITUTES OF HEALTH: NIH designates people with disabilities as a population with health disparities
By SD Network, 2023-09-26
The National Institutes of Health recently designated people with disabilities as a population with health disparities. People with disabilities often experience a wide and varying range of health conditions leading to poorer health and shorter lifespan. In addition, discrimination, inequality and exclusionary structural practices, programs and policies inhibit access to timely and comprehensive health care, which further results in poorer health outcomes. People with disabilities who also belong to one or more other populations with health disparities fare even worse.
MILWAUKEE JOURNAL SENTINEL: What are ABLE accounts, who is eligible and more to know about tax-free savings plans
By SD Network, 2023-08-29
Wisconsin is currently the only state that doesn't have an ABLE program, which provides a tax-free savings account for people with disabilities. Currently, Wisconsinites can open accounts in other states, but not many have. A bill in the legislature would allow people in Wisconsin to open accounts.
MILWAUKEE JOURNAL SENTINEL: Wisconsin is an outlier on savings accounts for people with disabilities. That could soon change..
By SD Network, 2023-08-21
ABLE accounts allow individuals with disabilities to save money without jeopardizing access to federal benefits like Medicaid and Supplemental Security Income. People with disabilities can use ABLE accounts to invest and save for disability-related expenses, such as housing, transportation and assistive technology. Wisconsin is one of only four states that doesn't have a ABLE program, but a bipartisan bill could soon change that.
People with disabilities can save more money without jeopardizing eligibility for government benefits thanks to a change in tax rules for the new year. Starting this month, the federal gift tax exclusion increases from $16,000 to $17,000 annually, according to the Internal Revenue Service.
CNET: Accessibility Gains From the Pandemic Shouldn't Be Forgotten, Advocates Say
By SD Network, 2022-05-19
As the pandemic whines don't (or at least as things return to a new normal), many people with disabilities hope accessibility gains made during the last few years won't be forgotten. Platforms such as Zoom and Microsoft Teams have made it possible for everyone --especially those with disabilities-- to participate in many different kinds of events that they otherwise wouldn't have been able to. Many of these accommodations weren't readily available before the pandemic. People with disabilities hope these now simple accommodations will continue.
Artificial intelligence has blown up in recent years. People use it multiple times a day to perform tasks or to obtain information. For many people with disabilities, artificial intelligence has made a huge impact on independence. There are countless examples of this.One unique way is in the classroom. This article talks several different ways robots can be used to assist children with disabilities in the classroom.
DISABILITY SCOOP: Biden Administration Gives States Flexibility To Expand Disability Services
By SD Network, 2021-05-22
States have lots of flexibility on what they can use the extra $12.67 billion for Medicaid home-and-community-based services on. The funding is part of the American Rescue Plan. States can use the money for everything from getting people off waiting lists to increasing wages for caregivers. Funding must be used to “supplement, not supplant” existing services, the guidance states, meaning that it has to be spent on home and community-based services that were not available under the Medicaid program as of April 1.