HB 1605: Community Health, Dept. of; making claims for Medicaid estate recovery of funds from ABLE accounts maintained through any qualified ABLE account, except as required by applicable federal law; prohibit

Georgia's ABLE program lets people with disabilities and their families save money in tax-advantaged accounts without losing eligibility for benefits like Medicaid. Under current law, when an ABLE account holder dies, the Department of Community Health (and Medicaid programs in other states) can file a claim against the leftover account funds to recoup Medicaid costs, a practice known as a 'clawback.' This bill rewrites O.C.G.A. § 30-9-14 to bar the Department of Community Health, or any other state agency, from making that estate recovery claim against ABLE account funds, unless federal law requires it. It also broadens the definition of 'ABLE account' to cover accounts Georgia residents hold through any state's qualified ABLE program, not just Georgia's own program. A related section, O.C.G.A. § 30-9-15, is updated so that ABLE account funds remain protected from creditors and legal claims generally, removing the old cross-reference that allowed the Medicaid claim exception.

• Prohibits the Department of Community Health and other state agencies from filing Medicaid estate recovery claims against funds in an ABLE account, except where federal law requires it.
• Expands the legal definition of 'ABLE account' to include accounts Georgia residents hold through any qualified ABLE program in any state, not only Georgia's program.
• Removes the prior legal process that let the Department of Community Health and other states' Medicaid programs claim leftover ABLE funds after a beneficiary's death.
• Updates the creditor-protection law (O.C.G.A. § 30-9-15) to drop the exception that had allowed Medicaid estate recovery claims against ABLE accounts.
• States legislative findings that the current clawback practice discourages people with disabilities from using ABLE accounts and undermines their purpose.

People with disabilities and their families who hold or are considering opening ABLE savings accounts, the Georgia Department of Community Health, the Georgia ABLE Program, and Medicaid programs in other states that currently rely on Georgia's clawback process.

Families using ABLE accounts to save for a disabled relative's future would no longer risk having those savings clawed back by Medicaid after the account holder's death, which could make the accounts more attractive and provide more lasting financial security, except in cases where federal law still requires repayment.

• Section 1 lays out legislative findings that ABLE account clawbacks discourage enrollment and undermine the accounts' purpose of long-term financial security.
• Section 2 rewrites O.C.G.A. § 30-9-14 to add a broader definition of 'ABLE account' covering out-of-state qualified ABLE programs held by Georgia residents.
• Section 2 also removes the old provision letting the Department of Community Health or other states' Medicaid programs claim ABLE funds after a beneficiary's death and replaces it with a prohibition on such claims, except as required by applicable federal law.
• Section 3 revises O.C.G.A. § 30-9-15 to remove the exception that had allowed Medicaid claims under Code Section 30-9-14 against otherwise protected ABLE account funds.
• Section 4 repeals any conflicting laws.

1. 2026-03-31House Second Readers (House)
2. 2026-03-27House First Readers (House)
3. 2026-03-25House Hopper (House)

• Scott Hilton (R, HD-048)Primary sponsor
• Leesa Hagan (R, HD-156)
• Brent Cox (R, HD-028)
• Angie O'Steen (R, HD-169)

• ABLE accounts
• disability savings
• Medicaid estate recovery
• Department of Community Health
• disability rights