---
title: 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
collection: bills
id: 2025-2026/hb1605
cite_as: HB 1605, 2025-2026 Regular Session (Ga.)
canonical_url: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/hb1605
md_url: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/hb1605.md
text_url: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/hb1605/text
source_url: https://www.legis.ga.gov/legislation/74499
date: 2026-03-31
status: introduced
corpus_version: bills-2026-09-13
license: Public record of the Georgia General Assembly, via LegiScan; see about.md
publisher: Georgia Commons, an independent project of Georgia Civic Data. Not the State of Georgia. Not legal advice.
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omitted: votes and history
omitted_chars: 129
omitted_url: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/hb1605.md?full=1
bill_number: HB 1605
session: 2025-2026 Regular Session
session_slug: 2025-2026
chamber: House
bill_type: bill
status_date: 2026-03-25
last_action: House Second Readers
sponsors:
  - Scott Hilton
  - Leesa Hagan
  - Brent Cox
  - Angie O'Steen
text_version: Introduced
has_text: true
legiscan_url: https://legiscan.com/GA/bill/HB1605/2025
upstream_id: 2138476
summaries_model: claude-sonnet-5
topic_tags:
  - ABLE accounts
  - disability savings
  - Medicaid estate recovery
  - Department of Community Health
  - disability rights
---

# 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

## Text

House Bill 1605
By: Representatives Hilton of the 48th, Hagan of the 156th, Cox of the 28th, and O’Steen of
the 169th
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT
To amend Chapter 9 of Title 30 of the Official Code of Georgia Annotated, relating to
Georgia Achieving a Better Life Experience (ABLE), so as to prohibit the Department of
Community Health from making claims for Medicaid estate recovery of funds from ABLE
accounts maintained through any qualified ABLE account, except as required by applicable
federal law; to provide a definition; to provide for legislative findings; to provide for related
matters; to repeal conflicting laws; and for other purposes.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF GEORGIA:
SECTION 1.
The General Assembly finds and declares that:
(1) ABLE accounts are intended to encourage and assist individuals and families in saving
private funds for the purpose of supporting individuals with disabilities to maintain health,
independence, and quality of life; and
(2) Reclaiming remaining funds in an ABLE account upon the death of a beneficiary for
Medicaid reimbursement, often known as a "clawback", creates a barrier to enrollment and
undermines the purpose of providing long-term financial security for Georgians with
disabilities.
SECTION 2.
Chapter 9 of Title 30 of the Official Code of Georgia Annotated, relating to Georgia
Achieving a Better Life Experience (ABLE), is amended by revising Code Section 30-9-14,
relating to death of designated beneficiary of ABLE Trust Fund, as follows:
"30-9-14.
(a) <ins>As used in this Code section, the term 'ABLE account' includes an account established
and owed by an eligible individual who is resident of this state, regardless of whether such
account is maintained through a Georgia ABLE program or another qualified ABLE
program.</ins> <del>Upon the death of a designated beneficiary of a Georgia ABLE Trust Fund
account, the Department of Community Health and the Medicaid program for another state
may file a claim with the Georgia ABLE Program for the total amount of medical
assistance provided for the designated beneficiary under the Medicaid program after the
date of the establishment of the ABLE account, less any premiums paid by or on behalf of
the designated beneficiary to a Medicaid buy-in program. Funds in the ABLE account of
the deceased designated beneficiary must first be distributed for qualified disability
expenses followed by distributions for the Medicaid claim authorized under this subsection.
Any remaining amount shall be distributed as provided in the participation agreement.
</del> (b) <ins>Except as required by applicable federal law, neither the Department of Community
Health nor any other state agency shall be authorized to make any claim for Medicaid
estate recovery of funds pursuant to Code Section 49-4-147.1 from funds in an ABLE
account.</ins> <del>The corporation shall assist and cooperate with the Department of Community
Health and Medicaid programs in other states upon the death of a designated beneficiary
of the trust fund by coordinating through the Department of Community Health with the
information needed to accomplish the purpose and objective of subsection (a) of this Code
section."
</del>
SECTION 3.
Said chapter is further amended by revising Code Section 30-9-15, relating to assignment of
ABLE account prohibited, as follows:
"30-9-15.
An ABLE account may not be assigned for the benefit of creditors, used as security or
collateral for any loan, or otherwise subject to alienation, sale, transfer, assignment, pledge,
encumbrance, or charge. <ins>Moneys</ins> <del>Except as provided in Code Section 30-9-14, moneys
</del> paid into or out of an ABLE account, and the income and assets of such account, are not
liable to attachment, levy, garnishment, or legal process in this state in favor of any creditor
of or claimant against any designated beneficiary or account contributor."
SECTION 4.
All laws and parts of laws in conflict with this Act are repealed.

## Summaries written by Georgia Commons

The following was written by claude-sonnet-5 from the text above and is not part of the bill. Quote the text, not the summary.

A Georgia House bill would stop the Department of Community Health from seeking Medicaid repayment out of ABLE savings accounts held by people with disabilities after they die, except where federal law requires it.

### Plain-language summary

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.

### What it does

- 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.

### Who it affects

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.

### Why it matters

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.

### Key provisions

- 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.

## Status

- Status: Introduced (2026-03-25)
- Last action: House Second Readers (2026-03-31)
- Sponsors: Scott Hilton, Leesa Hagan, Brent Cox, Angie O'Steen
- Official page: https://www.legis.ga.gov/legislation/74499

> The history, votes, and amendments (129 characters) are at https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/hb1605.md?full=1