Assuming the realistic future of Abbie living in a group placement setting of some sort, the actual cash value of, say, 40 years in that type of setting would be about $3 million. This is using a rough average of $80,000 per year which I can't fully vouch for, but seems
about right when I consider the cost of my grandmother's final years in a dementia facility where she needed full care.*
Asa claims that they won't use taxpayer dollars (
) but the reality of it is that as a chronological adult Abbie will be entitled to funds from Medicaid & Social Security, and potentially other state or private orgs, to help cover those costs. She herself won't make any money, and she'll have no assets beyond what may or may not be in some sort of trust that may or may not exist but which any lawyer with a valid law degree would structure in such a way that she would be eligible for as much help as possible when Asa & Priscilla are too old or bored or dead to continue to care for her.
Now, assuming Asa actually believes that Abbie will be able to continue to live in Mold Manor after their drinking and cholesterol intake catches up with them with a rotating cast of full time caregivers who never get sick or abruptly quit or move on to other jobs .... maybe $8 million is a believable figure for 40 years of care. That works out to $200,000 per year which would cover 3 full time workers at $50k per year (assuming 3 shifts of 8 hours per day, every day of the year), leaving $50k left over for food & bills. Medicaid will cover all her health care needs and probably some of the costs of an in-home placement. She'd be eligible for SNAP and SSI which will start at ~$1200/month or about $14,000 per year, going up with cost of living increases.
*
https://www.care.com/c/special-needs-care-for-adult-children-cost-of-care/