US Census Facts for Features on Disability

On this day in 1990, President George H.W. Bush signed into law the Americans with Disabilities Act, guaranteeing equal opportunity for people with disabilities in public accommodations, commercial facilities, employment, transportation, state and local government services and telecommunications.

Population Distribution
49.7 million
Number of people age 5 and over in the civilian noninstitutionalized population with at least one disability, according to Census 2000; this is a ratio of nearly 1-in-5 U.S. residents, or 19 percent. These individuals fit at least one of the following descriptions: 1) they are 5 years old or older and have a sensory, physical, mental or self-care disability; 2) they are 16 years old or older and have difficulty going outside the home; or 3) they are 16-to-64 years old and have an employment disability.

By age and sex -
7 percent of boys and 4 percent of girls ages 5 to 15 have disabilities.

20 percent of men and 18 percent of women ages 16 to 64 have disabilities.

43 percent of women and 40 percent of men 65 or older have disabilities.

24%
Percentage of West Virginia residents 5 or older who have at least one disability, the highest rate in the nation. (West Virginia also has the highest median age of any state.) The Mountaineer State is closely followed by Kentucky, Arkansas, Mississippi and Alabama. Counties with very high disability rates are clustered in the coal mining areas of Kentucky, West Virginia and Virginia. These counties are Bell, Breathitt, Clay, Harlan, Leslie, Martin and Owsley in Kentucky; Buchanan in Virginia; and McDowell in West Virginia.

30%
Percentage of residents of Paterson, N.J., who have at least one disability. Paterson, N.J.; Miami, Fla.; and Newark, N.J., have the highest proportions of people with disabilities among places with 100,000 or more residents.

46%
Percentage of people with disabilities reporting more than one disability.

60%
Percentage of working-age men with disabilities who are employed. For women, the rate is 51 percent. Altogether, 10.4 million
men and 8.2 million
women with disabilities are employed.

1.9 million
Number of people ages 18 to 34 who have disabilities and are enrolled in school. They comprise 12 percent of all students in this age group. The majority of this group (1.4 million) attend college or graduate school.

For further information on the data in this section, see http://www.census.gov/prod/2003pubs/c2kbr-17.pdf.

Specific Disabilities
9.3 million
The number of people age 5 or older in 2000 with a sensory disability involving sight or hearing. This group accounts for 3.6 percent of the total population age 5 or over.

21.2 million
The number of people age 5 or older with a condition limiting basic physical activities, such as walking, climbing stairs, reaching, lifting or carrying. This group accounts for 8.2 percent of the total population age 5 or older.

12.4 million
The number of people age 5 or older with a physical, mental or emotional condition causing difficulty in learning, remembering or concentrating. This group accounts for 4.8 percent of the total population age 5 or older.

6.8 million
Number of people age 5 or older who have a physical, mental or emotional condition causing difficulty in dressing, bathing or getting around inside the home. This group accounts for 2.6 percent of the total population age 5 or older.

18.2 million
Number of people age 16 or older who have a condition that makes it difficult to go outside the home to shop or visit a doctor. This group accounts for 8.6 percent of people who are of this age.

21.3 million
Number of people ages 16 to 64 who have a condition that affects their ability to work at a job or business. They account for 11.9 percent of the people in this age group.

For further information on the data in this section, see http://www.census.gov/prod/2003pubs/c2kbr-17.pdf.

Earnings
$28,803
Median 1999 earnings of the 12 million
year-round, full-time workers who have any of the six disabilities mentioned above. By comparison, people with none of these disabilities had median earnings of $33,970. http://www.census.gov/population/www/cen2000/phc-t32.html

Serving Our Nation
2.4 million
Number of veterans who receive compensation for service-related disabilities. Of these vets, 440,000 served in World War II; 165,000 in Korea; 799,000 in Vietnam; and 419,000 in the Persian Gulf. See Table 531 at http://www.census.gov/prod/www/statistical-abstract-03.html.

Following is a list of observances typically covered by the Census Bureau Facts for Features series, which can be found at http://www.census.gov/Press-Release/www/factsheets.html:

Martin Luther King, Jr. Day (Jan. 19)/African-American History Month (February)
Back to School (August)
Labor Day (Sept. 6)
Valentine's Day (Feb. 14)
Grandparents Day (Sept. 12)
Women's History Month (March)
Hispanic Heritage Month (Sept. 15-Oct. 15)
Irish-American Heritage Month (March)/ St. Patrick's Day (March 17)
Halloween (Oct. 31)
American Indian/Alaska Native Heritage Asian Pacific American Heritage Month (May)
Older Americans Month (May)
Veterans Day (Nov. 11)
Mother's Day (May 9)
Thanksgiving Day (Nov. 25)
Father's Day (June 20)
The Holiday Season (December)
The Fourth of July (July 4)
Anniversary of Americans With Disabilities Act (July 26)

Editor's note: Some of the preceding data were collected in surveys and, therefore, are subject to sampling error. Questions or comments should be directed to the Census Bureau's Public Information Office: telephone: (301) 763-3030; fax: (301) 457-3670; or e-mail: pio@census.gov.

 printer-friendly format