Mr. McRae is the State Treasurer of Mississippi. He submitted this guest column.
More
than one in three Mississippi adults live with some kind of disability,
well above the national average of 25 percent. For many of these
families, the disabilities come with added expenses, such as higher
health care, housing, and transportation costs.
In
fact, Mississippians spend $4.5 billion annually on disability-related
health care expenses alone, according to the Centers for Disease Control
and Prevention. As a result, many with disabilities rely on social
safety net programs to help cover those health care expenses, as well as
basic costs like food and housing.
But
prior to 2014, the receipt of such assistance meant beneficiaries were
limited when it came to putting money away in savings. The limits were
strict. Just $2,000 in savings could disqualify someone from receiving
necessary support.
In
the end, many with disabilities were forced to remain in poverty just
to receive the public benefits they required. In December 2014, however,
things changed. Congress passed the ABLE Act, giving thousands of
Mississippi families a path to greater financial stability.
Today,
those with disabilities and their families can set up an ABLE account,
which allows them to save money without jeopardizing necessary benefits.
These are tax-advantaged accounts that can be used to pay for
disability-related expenses, including education, housing,
transportation, employment training and support, assistive technology,
personal support services, health care expenses, financial management,
administrative services, and more.
To
be eligible for an ABLE account, the disability’s onset must have
occurred before the beneficiary turned 26 years old. If you or your
loved one meet that criteria and receive SSI or SSDI benefits, you are
automatically eligible to open an ABLE account. Even if you don’t meet
those criteria, you might still be eligible, but additional paperwork
will be necessary before enrolling.
Once
you’ve opened an ABLE account, the beneficiary, as well as their family
and friends, can contribute to it. Then, families or the beneficiaries
themselves get to choose how the money is invested, giving you the
opportunity to grow your savings over time.
If you believe an ABLE account would benefit you or a family member, please visit Treasury.MS.gov/ABLE to learn more or call my office at (601) 359-3600. We are ready to help more Mississippians become ABLE to save.
9 comments:
This is nice, but even nicer would be him "fixing" PERS.
More importantly, I’d like to know how many Mississippians are fraudulently getting a disability check? Just because you had an injury doesn’t mean you can’t work and provide for yourself. I believe many people are ripping off this system and are simply collecting a check.
1:32 - the State Treasurer never has had shit to do with saving PERS. What gave you that notion? The Treasurer has nothing to do with disability either, 2:07.
4:01, please provide any references and cites that you have that say that he cannot weigh in on regarding either of those issues.
5:58 - Anybody can 'weigh in' on either or both issues. The comments were 'fixing' PERS and people 'ripping off' disability. The Treasurer neither has the ability to 'fix' PERS or to deal with disability rip-offs. If you think differently, please provide your own 'cites'.
The State Treasurer is on the PERS board. He contracts with a temp agency to provide contract labor. My question is why does he not fill the vacant PINS that he has for his agency. At least, if the PINS were filled, they would be paying into PERS. We have far to many state employees retiring and then coming back on contract at half salary and half hours and drawing their retirement pension! They are a number of state agencies doing this- the Legislature should put a stop to this madness!
Black Angus breeder says..... grow a set and bid out PERS to producers not posers!
7:46 - Are you familiar with the employer's amount due and payable every time a PIN is filled?
Yes - it is included with that FY budget and includes all amounts associated with the PIN. What these agencies are doing is taking that money and paying a temp agency about $15.00 per hour. The remainder of the money can be used for other things, such as furniture, other salary increases, etc. I understand that McRae rarely comes into the office. Last I heard, they were still working about four hours a day because of COVID. Be curious to see the Audit report from the Department of Audit. They can’t even balance the state’s monies!
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