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Aged, Blind and Disabled Manual Section: Financial Eligibility Requirements Policy Manual Number: 110.030 Chapter: ABD Unearned Income

March 18, 2019 Division of TennCare 1 ABD UNEARNED INCOME

Legal Authority: 20 CFR 416.1110; 20 CFR 416.1120; 20 CFR 416.1121; 20 CFR 416.1123; 20 CFR 416.1124; Public Law 113–295; Tenn. Code Title 71, Chapter 4, Part 8

1. Policy Statement

Unearned income is money an individual receives that is not the result of current work efforts, but accrues to an individual as the result of investment, inheritance, previous work efforts, etc. Unearned income for the ABD TennCare Medicaid categories is counted according to the Social Security Administration (SSA) Supplemental Security Income (SSI) financial methodology.

2. Unearned Income

Achieving a Better Life Experience (ABLE) Excluded.

ABLE accounts or 529A accounts are tax-advantaged savings accounts for individuals with disabilities that are established under a qualified ABLE program. The funds within an ABLE account are intended to cover the individual’s Qualified Disability Expenses (QDEs) related to her blindness or disability.

All contributions and ABLE account earnings in an ABLE account are excluded as income, except that contributions are not deducted from countable income of the individual making the contribution. Contributions to an ABLE account from a third party should not be considered countable as income or a resource. This includes funds from a trust.

Distributions from an ABLE account are not income of the designated beneficiary in any month, regardless of whether the distribution is for non-housing QDEs, housing QDEs or non-qualified expenses. Distribution from an ABLE account is the conversion of a resource from one form to another.

QDEs include, but are not limited to: education, housing, transportation, employment training and support, assistive technology and personal support services, health, prevention and wellness, financial management and administrative services, legal fees, and funeral and burial expenses, and basic living expenses.

Adoption Subsidies Title IV adoption subsidies are intended to pay for general