Who are people with disabilities and how is disability defined?

The presence of a disability is typically assessed in one of three ways: a limitation in complex, role-related activities such as working, keeping house, or going to school; a limitation in functioning, such as walking, climbing stairs, seeing, hearing, or remembering; or a limitation in one or more basic daily activities, such as bathing, dressing, preparing meals, or shopping. A relatively new, standardized measure of disability for use in national surveys contains six questions that combine the functional and daily activity approaches. A person has a disability if he or she has difficulty in mobility, vision, hearing, cognition, or certain daily activities.

Although the prevalence of disability increases dramatically with age, a majority of people with disabilities are non-elderly. Most live in the community, rather than institutions. People with disabilities are more likely to be living in poverty than people without disabilities, and they are much less likely to have jobs. A substantial fraction lack health insurance, and unmet need for healthcare is high. Rates of participation in social and community activities are much lower for people with disabilities than for those without.

This presentation explores these issues for people with disabilities in general, and with particular focus on racial/ethnic differences and on veterans with disabilities.