Basic Facts: People with Disabilities

How Many People in the United States Have a Disability?

An estimated 48.9 million people, or 19.4% of the non-institutionalized civilians, have a disability.
An estimated 24.1 million people have a severe disability.
An estimated 34.2 million people, or 17.5%, have a functional limitation.

Source: U.S. Census Bureau Survey of Income and Program Participation (SIPP) - 1992

As defined in the 1994 Census survey, a person with a severe disability is one who is unable to perform one or more activities of daily living; has one or more specific disabilities; or is a long-term user of assistive devices such as wheelchairs, crutches, and walkers.

As defined in the 1994 Census survey, a person with a non-severe disability is one who has difficulty performing functional activities such as hearing, seeing, having one's speech understood, lifting, carrying, climbing stairs and walking; or has difficulty with activities of daily living.

What Are the Employment Rates for People with Disabilities?

People with disabilities of working age (21 to 64 years old) are employed at a rate considerably below the general population. The U.S. Census Bureau information for individuals of working age in the United States indicates that:

82% of the general population are employed
Among all people with disabilities of working age (29.4 million), 52% are employed
Among people with severe disabilities (14.2 million), 26% are employed

Source: U.S. Census Bureau's Survey of Income and Program Participation (SIPP) - 1994

The more recent U.S. Current Population Survey indicates similar findings. From 1997-1999, for individuals aged 25 to 61 years old, in the United States:

88% of people without disabilities worked 52 hours or more in the previous year
34% of people with disabilities worked 52 hours or more in the previous year

Source: U.S. Current Population Survey, analysis by Cornell University RRTC. The definition of disability is based on self-reporting a health problem or disability that prevents an individual from working or that limits the kind or amount of work an individual can do

Employment and People with Disabilities

Among adults with disabilities of working age (18 to 64 years old), three out of ten (29%) work full- or part-time, compared to eight out of ten (79%) of those without disabilities-- a gap of fifty percentage points.
Among those with disabilities age 16 to 64 who are not employed, seven out of ten (72%) say that they would prefer to work.
Among adults with disabilities who work full-time, fewer than half (46%) say that their work requires them to use their full talents or abilities, compared to two out of three (66%) in 1994.
Fully one-third (34%) of adults with disabilities lived in a household that had an annual income of less than $15,000 in 1997, compared to only about one in eight (12%) of those without disabilities. This twenty-two-point gap between the percentage of disabled and non-disabled persons living in very low income households has remained virtually the same since 1986.
Just over half (54%) of adults with disabilities have heard of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA).

Source: 1998 National Organization on Disability/Louis Harris & Associates Survey of Americans with Disabilities

Facts About Specific Disabilities

An estimated 2.5 million people, or 1% of the population, have a developmental disability
In any one-year period, an estimated 51.3 million people, or 28% of the population, have a developmental disability
About 5 million people, or 2.8% of the adult population, have a severe developmental disability

Source: National Institute on Disability and Rehabilitation Research - 1996

Almost One-Third of All Families Are Impacted by Disability

An estimated 20.3 million families, or 29% of all families in the United States, have at least one member with a disability

Source: 1990 Family Resource Supplement to the National Health Interview Survey

©The National Service Inclusion Project (NSIP) is a training and technical assistance provider on disability inclusion. NSIP partners with the Association on University Centers on Disability, National Council on Independent Living, Association on Higher Education and Disability and National Down Syndrome Congress to build connections between disability organizations and all CNCS grantees, including national directs, to increase the participation of people with disabilities in national service.