August 2019 AchievABLE Newsletter

The August issue of our AchievABLE Newsletter contains stories on the following:

#ABLEtoSave Campaign Launch

The ABLE National Resource Center (ABLE NRC) announced today the launch of its 2019 #ABLEtoSave campaign. #ABLEtoSave is a month-long grassroots education and informational campaign about Achieving a Better Life Experience (ABLE) accounts. The primary goals of #ABLEtoSave are to increase awareness about ABLE accounts and to accelerate the number of eligible individuals with disabilities who are opening and benefiting from ABLE accounts across the country. The ABLE National Resource Center is founded and managed by National Disability Institute.

ABLE accounts are tax-advantaged savings accounts that have the potential to significantly increase the independence and quality of life of individuals with disabilities. This includes both individuals with disabilities who receive public benefits and those who do not receive public benefits. ABLE accounts will not jeopardize benefits such as Medicaid, Supplemental Security Income (SSI) and many other benefits. Since the passage of the Stephen Beck, Jr. Achieving a Better Life Experience Act in December 2014, 43 ABLE programs have launched, including the District of Columbia (many of which are nationwide programs). As of the end of March 2019, more than 41,000 individuals with disabilities from across the country have opened ABLE accounts and more than $230 million has been invested in those accounts.

“#ABLEtoSave month is an opportunity for qualified people with disabilities, their family members and supporters to learn how these accounts can increase financial stability in both daily living and long-term goal setting,” Miranda Kennedy, Director, ABLE National Resource Center, said. “We are excited to share with everyone best practices and information on how to open and benefit from ABLE accounts so that more people with disabilities can Achieve a Better Life Experience through ABLE.”

The campaign is expected to have widespread participation from all existing and soon-to-be-launched ABLE programs, major national disability groups, financial institutions and other stakeholders.

Throughout the month of August, ABLE NRC will provide sample messaging, social media posts and other resources to all campaign participants. Webinars will be held each Thursday during August. Webinar topics include:

  • Kickoff (August 1-2): Welcome to #ABLEtoSave Month
  • WEEK 1 (August 5– 9): Opening an ABLE Account: Key Decisions for Success 
  • WEEK 2 (August 12 – 16): ABLE Best Practices and Action Steps for Family Members and Supporters (Circle of Support)
  • WEEK 3 (August 19-23): ABLE Best Practices for Working-Age Adults
  • WEEK 4 (August 26- 30): Celebrating All the Ways You Are ABLE: Announcing Winners from #ABLEtoSave Video Contest and Next Steps

All current ABLE programs, as well as programs that plan to launch by the end of 2019, will participate in the campaign. State ABLE programs may offer certain enrollment incentives during August and will share their own ABLE materials in addition to those provided as part of the #ABLEtoSave campaign.

An #ABLEtoSave toolkit is housed on the ABLE NRC website and includes a logo, sample social media posts, videos and additional outreach materials. For more information about the ABLE Act and ABLE accounts, visit ablenrc.org.

The #ABLEtoSave Awareness Campaign is made possible through the generous support of Prudential, Ascensus, TIAA, Fidelity and Fifth Third Bank.

#ABLEtoSave Webinar Series

The ABLE National Resource Center is excited to announce our annual, nationwide #ABLEtoSave Awareness Campaign Webinar Series that will run throughout the month of August 2019. The series provides information about Achieving a Better Life Experience (ABLE) accounts. Weekly webinars will be held each Thursday in August from 2:00- 3:00 p.m. ET and will include information for people with disabilities, family members and those who support them. Each webinar will feature the stories of ABLE account owners and/or family members and how an ABLE account enhances the health, independence and quality of life for people with disabilities. 

The webinar today, August 1, is an orientation and an introduction to ABLE accounts and #ABLEtoSave month. To kick off the #ABLEtoSave campaign, you will hear the stories of several ABLE account owners and their ABLE goals and the wide variety of ways in which an ABLE account can be used. #ABLEtoSave weekly webinars will include the following:

  • Kickoff: August 1: Welcome to #ABLEtoSave Month: An Orientation to What You Need to Know about ABLE (REGISTER)
  • Week 1: August 8: Opening an ABLE Account: Key Decisions for Success (REGISTER)
  • Week 2: August 15: ABLE Best Practices and Action Steps for Family Members and Supporters (Circle of Support) (REGISTER)
  • Week 3: August 22: ABLE Best Practices for Working-Age Adults (REGISTER)
  • Week 4: August 29: Celebrating All the Ways You are ABLE: Announcing Winners from #ABLEtoSave Video Contest and Next Steps!  (REGISTER)

All webinars will be moderated by Miranda Kennedy, Director, ABLE National Resource Center, and will include a panel of ABLE account owners.

#ABLEtoSave Toolkit

The ABLE National Resource Center (ABLE NRC) is kicking off the 2019 #ABLEtoSave ABLE public awareness campaign on Thursday, August 1! The campaign will provide information and resources about ABLE accounts throughout August. We are grateful that you have all agreed to participate in getting the message out about the benefits of ABLE accounts for people with disabilities and their families. Together, we can increase awareness of ABLE accounts across the nation and (hopefully) accelerate the opening of accounts across all ABLE programs.

We have prepared a toolkit for you to use with materials relating to the campaign. Materials include the following:

  1. One-page description of the campaign – Download PDF
  2. Logo for #ABLEtoSave campaign – #ABLEtoSave Logos (Includes eps, jpg, and png)
  3. “Swiss cheese”/fill-in-the-blank type press release – Download PDF
  4. Full press release – Download PDF
  5. Brief blurb about campaign for newsletters – Download PDF
  6. List of the upcoming webinars as part of the #ABLEtoSave webinar series – Download PDF
  7. Sample social media posts – Download PDF

We encourage you to distribute these materials through your networks, as well as any additional materials that you have to promote your own programs. Please keep in contact with us throughout the month. In particular, please do the following:

  1. Always use the hashtag #ABLEtoSave
  2. Like and share our posts and tag the ABLE NRC on Facebook (@theABLENRC) and Twitter (@theABLENRC) wherever possible
  3. Send us news articles referencing the #ABLEtoSave campaign that appear in your local media
  4. Let us know about feedback you receive on the campaign

On behalf of everyone at the ABLE National Resource Center, we would like to thank you in advance for participating so enthusiastically in the campaign. Let’s use our collective voices to increase the awareness of ABLE accounts!

The #ABLEtoSave Awareness Campaign is made possible through the generous support of Prudential, Ascensus, TIAA, Fidelity and Fifth Third Bank.