Able Americans Champions Reforms for Those Living with Disabilities, Mental Illness
WASHINGTON, D.C. — Able Americans, a project of the National Center for Public Policy Research, has released two new reports aimed at improving the lives of Americans living with disabilities or mental illness.
In “ABLE Accounts 3.0: Empowering People with Disabilities to Save, Invest, and Thrive,” Sara Hart Weir and Rachel Barkley explain how ABLE accounts are transforming lives, and what policy leaders can do to ensure more people benefit.
Ten years ago, Congress passed the bipartisan Stephen Beck Jr. Achieving a Better Life Experience (ABLE) Act, a groundbreaking law that gave people with disabilities the ability to save and invest without losing access to essential benefits like Medicaid or SSI. Today, ABLE accounts have helped more than 200,000 individuals save $2.46 billion for critical expenses like housing, education, caregiving, and transportation while safeguarding their eligibility for life-sustaining programs.
Even so, millions more are eligible and unaware of the opportunity. “Able Accounts 3.0” outlines how Congress and the states can make the most of ABLE accounts, and how employers can better implement them in benefits packages.
In “Mental Health Reforms: Expanding Access from Prevention to Crisis,” Dr. Elinore McCance-Katz and Leslie Ford expose the failures of the current mental health system and outline solutions to provide dignified, effective care, from community-based resources to inpatient treatment when necessary.
One in five Americans — nearly 59 million people — live with a mental illness. Yet, the U.S. mental health system often leads those with the most severe needs without effective care. Too often, these vulnerable Americans fall into a downward spiral that ends in incarceration, homelessness, or even death.
The numbers are staggering: 1.9 million annual psychiatric ER visits, costing nearly $1 billion a year; 270,000 incarcerated adults with serious mental health or substance use disorders, costing $13 billion annually; and 67% of unsheltered homeless living with serious mental illness and/or substance use disorders, costing $6 billion annually. That’s a $20 billion price tag — and untold human suffering.
The report’s authors argue that Congress and the Trump administration should structure spending to fund crisis-based inpatient beds; reform commitment standards; create a real continuum for community-based, outpatient care; and track outcomes for Americans with serious mental health and substance use disorders.
Both reports are available at ableamericans.us.