6 Million More Americans Newly Qualify for This Tax-Advantaged Account - But Most Don't Know It Exists

There's a tax-advantaged savings account that lets you invest and grow wealth without losing Medicaid or SSI eligibility, and as of January 1, 2026, roughly 6 million more Americans became eligible for one. 

But a CNBC investigation published May 27, 2026, found that most of those newly eligible workers have no idea the accounts exist, and most employers never mention them. If you or someone in your family lives with a disability, learning about this change could be one of the best things you can do to prepare yourself financially for the years ahead.

Here's what ABLE accounts are, who now qualifies, and why the awareness gap is costing eligible Americans real money.

What is an ABLE account?

An ABLE account, short for Achieving a Better Life Experience, is a tax-advantaged savings account created by Congress in 2014 specifically for people with disabilities. It works similarly to a Roth IRA. Contributions are made with after-tax dollars, money invested in the account grows tax-free, and qualified withdrawals are also tax-free.

What makes ABLE accounts uniquely valuable is the benefit protection they provide. People receiving SSI or Medicaid face a strict $2,000 asset limit, and accumulating more can trigger a loss of those benefits. ABLE accounts are exempt from that limit up to $100,000, meaning a person with a disability can save and invest without those funds counting against SSI or Medicaid eligibility.

Qualified expenses the account can cover include a broad range of disability-related costs: housing, education, transportation, health care and prevention, employment training, assistive technology, and basic living expenses.

The 2026 expansion: Who is newly eligible?

Under the original law, ABLE accounts were only available to people whose disability began before their 26th birthday. That cutoff excluded a large and largely invisible population of adults who developed disabilities later in life through illness, injury, military service, or degenerative conditions.

The ABLE Age Adjustment Act, passed in 2022 and effective January 1, 2026, raised that onset cutoff from age 26 to age 46. The National Disability Institute estimates that 6.1 million more Americans became eligible as a result, bringing total ABLE-eligible Americans to approximately 14 million. 

Newly covered conditions include multiple sclerosis, traumatic brain injury, mental health disorders, and other chronic or degenerative illnesses that often strike during prime working years.

Critically, the age-46 threshold refers to when the disability began, not the account holder's current age. If your disability began before your 46th birthday, you are now eligible for an ABLE account regardless of how old you are today. 

A 60-year-old whose MS was diagnosed at 42 qualifies. A veteran whose disability began at 35 qualifies. The account can be opened at any point after the disability onset requirement is met.

How the accounts work in practice

The annual contribution limit for ABLE accounts increased to $20,000 in 2026, up from $19,000 in 2025. Anyone can contribute, but total contributions across all sources cannot exceed that annual limit.

Working account holders without an employer-sponsored retirement plan can contribute an additional amount equal to the individual poverty threshold — $15,650 in 2026 — or up to their employment earnings, whichever is less, for a potential total of up to $35,650 per year.

Contributions may also be eligible for a tax credit of up to $1,050 in 2026 through the Saver's Credit, adding another layer of benefit for lower- and middle-income account holders.

Why the awareness gap matters

Despite the expansion, millions of eligible workers are leaving money on the table, according to the CNBC investigation. Employers rarely mention ABLE accounts during benefits enrollment, even though employer contributions are permitted. Unlike 401(k) plans, there is no federal requirement that employers communicate their availability.

For pre-retirees managing a disability or supporting a family member who has one, that silence is costly. Every year an eligible person delays is a year of tax-free growth foregone, and savings held in a standard account instead can count against SSI or Medicaid asset limits.

How to open one

ABLE accounts are administered at the state level. Nearly every state and Washington, D.C. sponsor ABLE accounts, and most allow out-of-state participation. Four states — Idaho, North Dakota, South Dakota, and Wisconsin — do not have their own plans, but residents there can enroll in another state's program.

To open an account, eligible individuals self-certify their disability with a written physician diagnosis confirming onset before age 46. Those already receiving SSI or SSDI automatically qualify and can open an account without additional documentation. The ABLE National Resource Center (ablenrc.org) maintains a comparison tool for all state plans, including fee structures and investment options.

Bottom line

ABLE accounts are one of the most underutilized financial tools available to Americans with disabilities, and the 2026 age expansion makes them newly relevant for millions of people who have been managing chronic illness, injury, or mental health conditions since their 20s, 30s, or early 40s.

The combination of tax-free growth, benefit protection, and flexible qualified expenses could help you grow your wealth even if contributions start small.

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