Disability Statistics & Policy 
in the United States of America 
and the World

by
William P. LaPlant, Jr .
ICDRI

Introduction

In the rest of the world a similar situation exists, complicated by various cultural and other views of the existence, causes, and impacts of various kinds of disabilities.

Here are a few U.S. agencies with differing responsibilities for supplying various services for people with disabilities under the various U.S. laws and regulations:

• U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) -- Employment under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) < http://www.eeoc.gov/ >.  The definition of disability <http://www.eeoc.gov/docs/902cm.html > used by the EEOC comes from Section 902 of the ADA as interpreted by rulings of the U.S. Supreme Court.
• U.S. Department of Transportation, Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) -- Access to and accommodation for U.S. commercial airline travel under the Air Carrier Access Act < http://www.dot.gov/accessibility/index.html >.
• U.S. Federal Communications Commission (FCC) -- Telecommunications access for people with disabilities under Section 255 of the Communications Act < http://www.fcc.gov/cgb/consumerfacts/section255.html >.
• The Architectural and Transportation Barriers Compliance (The Access) Board -- Access by people with disabilities to public buildings, transportation, electronics and information technology, etc. under various laws < http://www.access-board.gov/ >.
• The U.S. Department of Education is charged with providing people with disabilities with access to education and rehabilitation under various laws and regulations < http://www.ed.gov/offices/OCR/disability.html >.
  • Through its National Institute on Disability and Rehabilitation Research (NIDRR), Education also funds research on all aspects in order to create an environment allowing people with disabilities to lead full and productive lives: < http://www.ed.gov/offices/OSERS/NIDRR/index.html >.
• The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services ensures that health care is available to people with disabilities < http://www.hhs.gov/ocr/index.html >.
  • Here is a discussion of the relation between the way the U.S. determines disability status and the United Nations (UN) classification system <http://www.cdc.gov/ncbddd/dh/icf2.htm>.
• The definition of disability used by the U.S. Social Security Administration to determine eligibility for social security disability: < http://www.ssa.gov/disability/professionals/bluebook/#Definition of Disability >.
• The U.S. Department of Labor has a similar role to that of the EEOC but it also includes explicitly includes state and local governments: < http://www.dol.gov/oasam/programs/crc/crcwelcome.htm >.
  • The Department of Labor also provides resources both for supporting employers through
    • the Job Accommodation Network (JAN): < http://www.dol.gov/odep/jan/jan.htm >, and
    • the Employer Assistance Referral Network (EARN): < http://www.dol.gov/odep/programs/earn.htm >;
  • and for supporting employees through
    • the National Center on Workforce and Disability for Adults (NCWD-Adult): <http://www.onestops.info/ >, and
    • the National Collaborative on Workforce and Disability for Youth (NCWD-Youth) <http://www.ncwd-youth.info/ >.
• The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) is responsible for preventing housing discrimination against people with disabilities under Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 and Executive Order No. 13217, "The New Freedom Initiative on Community Based Living": < http://www.hud.gov/offices/fheo/disabilities/index.cfm >.

Statistics --

• The UN Department of Economic and Social Affairs, Statistics Division <http://unstats.un.org/unsd/disability/default.asp> may be the best source for information on people with disabilities throughout the world. The problem here is that the accuracy and presenance of most of that information is best characterized as "unknown."
  • The World Health Organization (WHO) Research Tools page has a discussion of the statistical data available including data on people with disabilities: <http://www.who.int/research/en/ >.
  • The WHO is also developing a classification scheme for disabilities, which is gaining global acceptance, called the International Classification of Functioning, Disability and Health (see http://www3.who.int/icf/icftemplate.cfm).
  • There is also a disability assessment tool developed by WHO, the World Health Organization Disability Assessment Schedule II (WHODAS II, see http://www.who.int/icidh/whodas/index.html).

• Here are the main statistical agencies of the world.

United States of America

There are various sources for statistics on people with disabilities in the United States of America.

• Here is the Disability Statistics Center at UCSF: < http://www.dsc.ucsf.edu/ >.
  • Available Disability Statistics Center reports: < http://www.dsc.ucsf.edu/UCSF/lis.taf?_function=search&amp;_sort=PubNo&amp;_type=Report&amp;_winame=ALL_REPORTS >.
  • Available Statistical Abstracts: < http://www.dsc.ucsf.edu/UCSF/lis.taf?_function=search&amp;_sort=PubNo&amp;_type=Abstract&amp;_winame=ALL_ABSTRACTS >.

• Here is statistical data about people with disabilities from the U.S. Census Bureau: < http://www.census.gov/hhes/www/disability.html >.

• The International Center for Disability Information at WVU provides their "Disability Tables": < http://www.icdi.wvu.edu/disability/tables.html >.  International data covers occurrence disease and mortality rather than disability.  U.S. state and national data is largely derived from U.S. Census data.

• Here is HHS data < http://www.aoa.gov/aoa/stats/statpage.html > on people with disabilities who are over 65:
  • < http://www.aoa.gov/aoa/stats/Disabilities/97sipp-disabiliestable.html >
  • < http://www.aoa.gov/Census2000/SF3/Disabilities-x-State-65plus.xls >
  • < http://www.aoa.gov/aoa/stats/Disabilities/65plus-97sipp-disabiliestable.html >
  • < http://www.aoa.gov/aoa/stats/Disabilities/2plusadls.html >
  • < http://www.aoa.gov/aoa/stats/adllimits/httoc.htm >
  • < http://www.aoa.gov/aoa/stats/moblimit/mobilitylimit.html >.

• Summary statistics on disabilities is available from the U.S. CDC: <http://www.cdc.gov/ncipc/didop/disability.htm>.

Anguilla

Here is a summary study which contains health, disability, and insurance statistics for Anguilla: 

"Health, Disabilities, and Insurance".  [Note: this is a 1.6 MB pdf file.] 

Armenia

The "Statistical Yearbook of Armenia, year 2001" section on "Public Health" contains summary tables including data on people with disabilities. See tables 125 through 128.  [Note: this is a 592 KB pdf file.]

Australia

Here is a primary source document for disability statistics in Australia: "Health Status: Disability among adults".
to be continued... 

Bangladesh

Bangladesh provides a summary Disability Map by Zila (Bangladeshi region or county). 

Canada

Statistics Canada provides many sources of statistical data on people with disabilities. Here a few:

• "A Profile of Disability in Canada, 2001" - Tables  [Note: this is a 3.26 MB pdf file.]
• "Population aged 15 and over with a disability, by nature of disability" - a table with access to data by province or territory.
  "Participation and Activity Limitation Survey: A profile of disability in Canada" - in The Daily, December 3, 2002, a publication of Statistics Canada.  This provides a summary of 2001 Canadian statistics of people with disabilities.

China

The Table of Contents of the "China Statistical Year Book, 2001," published by the National Bureau of Statistics of China, indicates one section of data about people with disabilities. "22-36 Basic Conditions of People with Disabilities." No way of accessing the publication itself, and thus this data, is provided.

Croatia

Croatia provides summary statistics on people receiving insurance compensation as the result of disabilities and other causes. See it's Statistical Yearbook of the Republic of Croatia 2001.

European Commission

The European Commission provides a statistical pocketbook on ‘Disability and social participation in Europe’ [price= 7.00 EU].  The pocketbook compares  the social situation and participation of three population groups: people with severe disabilities, people with moderate disabilities, people without disabilities, as defined by a ‘global disability question ’in the European Community Household Panel.  Table 2 in the free publication [a 258 KB pdf file] 'Social protection: expenditure on cash benefits and on benefits in kind,' includes summary statistics for monetary and in kind support for people with disabilities by state.
to be continued...

Faro Islands

Statistics Faro Islands, in its Yearbook 2002, provides tables convering social welfare data which includes information on people with disabilities.  In addition, tables covering the education of children with disabilities are also provided.

France

In France,  Insee (L'Institut national de la statistique et des études économiques) provides several studies concerning people with disabilities.  At present, the most general  [Note: both are pdf files] are:

• "The disabled in institutions: the fate of residents from 1998 to 2000"
•  "Disabilities on all levels" [a 55KB pdf].

Germany

In Germany, the Federal Statistics Office, (DESTATIS), provides summary statistics (the numbers and amount spent) on people with disabilities who are receiving pensions due to "incapacity for work or occupational disability," see the table, "Notifiable diseases, additions of pensions due to incapacity for work or occupational disability."  Additional information is provided on the number of Public Service personnel because of disabilities, see "Public Service Personnel - Recipients of Pensions."  They also provide information on the percentage of public service employees of various occupations retiring because of disability, see "62 % of the teachers who retired in 1999 terminated their career because of disability for service," "2.5% more pensioners, but less retirements for reasons of disability for service (2001)," and "Fewer retirements of teachers because of desability for service (2002)."

Gurnsey

The Gurnsey census site provides information and tables on people with disabilities contained in their 2001 Gurnsey Census Report. See Section 5 "Individuals in Households," subsections on "Long Term Disability," pages 59 & 60; and tables 13a, "Disability by Age and Sex," 13b, "Disability by Age and Sex," and 13c, "Persons with Multiple Disabilites;" pages 102 & 103.  [Note: this is an 818KB pdf file.]

The Hungarian Central Statistical Office (KSH) provides access to a database with a variety of statistics on the support provided to the aged and poeple with disabilities.

Statistics Iceland, the national statistical agency of Iceland, provides information, in their Statistical Yearbook of Iceland 2002 section on "Health and Social Affairs" is available as a series of MS Excel tables (also avialable as a  pdf file -- this is a 128KB pdf file), several of which contain information on the number of households receiving various kinds of supplimental income because of the presence of people with disabilities.  See particularly tables numbered 19.9, 19.10, 19.11,  19.12, 19.30, and 19.31.

Italy

Italy (the Italian ISTAT, Instatuto Nationale di Statistico) provides an entire site of statistical information on and for people with disabilities, which they call "HANDICAPINCIFRE."  See <http://www.handicapincifre.it/e_prehome.htm> for a discussion of the reason for the creation of the site.  The site is described as follows:

Japan

United Kingdom

to be continued...

Caveat: This paper is a preliminary study and should be considered neither complete nor definitive.  The author of this study welcomes suggestions and intends to periodically revise and extend this material.  Please contact the author at  <blaplant@mindspring.com> with your comments and suggestions.

The links on this document were current as of the date of last composition, January 7, 2003.

© 2002, 2003 William P. LaPlant, Jr.

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