Census Bureau News -- Profile America Facts for Features: Anniversary of Americans with Disabilities Act: July 26

WASHINGTON, July 25, 2012 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- The following is being released by the U.S. Census Bureau:

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Anniversary of Americans with Disabilities Act: July 26

This day marks the 22nd anniversary of the signing of the Americans with Disabilities Act, which guarantees equal opportunity for people with disabilities in public accommodations, commercial facilities, employment, transportation, state and local government services and telecommunications.

The statistics below come from "Americans with Disabilities: 2010" www.census.gov/prod/2012pubs/p70-131.pdf.

Population Distribution

57 million
Number of people with a disability living in the United States in 2010. They represent 19 percent of the civilian noninstitutionalized population.

By age —

• 8 percent of children under 15 have disabilities.
• 21 percent of people 15 and older have disabilities.
• 17 percent of people 21 to 64 have disabilities.
• 50 percent of adults 65 and older have disabilities.

20%
Percentage of females with a disability, compared with 17 percent of males. (When adjusted for the aging of the population, the disability rate was 18 percent for both males and females).

Specific Disabilities

8 million
Number of people 15 and older who have a hearing difficulty. Among people 65 and older, 4 million have difficulty hearing.

8 million
Number of people 15 and older with a vision difficulty. 

31 million
Number of people 15 and older who have difficulty walking or climbing stairs.

4 million
Number of people who used a wheelchair to assist with mobility. This compares with 12 million people who used a cane, crutches or walker.

On the Job

41%
Percentage of people 21 to 64 with a disability who were employed.

28%
Percentage of people 21 to 64 with severe disabilities who were employed. This compares with 71 percent for individuals with nonsevere disabilities.

Income and Poverty

$1,961
Median monthly earnings for people 21 to 64 with a disability, compared with $2,724 for those with no disability.

$1,577
Median monthly earnings for people 21 to 64 with severe disabilities, while those with nonsevere disabilities had median monthly earnings of $2,402.  

$2,838
Median monthly earnings for people 21 to 64 with disabilities associated only with communication, including blindness or difficulty seeing, deafness or difficulty hearing, and difficulty having speech understood.

29%
Percentage of people 15 to 64 with severe disabilities who were in poverty, while 18 percent with nonsevere disabilities were in poverty.

Program Participation

59%
Percentage of people 15 to 64 with severe disabilities who receive public assistance. Thirty-three percent receive social security benefits. This compares with 9 percent of adults 15 to 64 with nonsevere disabilities that receive Social Security benefits.

28%
Percentage of adults with severe disabilities who receive food stamp benefits, compared with 8 percent for those with no disability.

11%
Percentage of people 15 to 64 with severe disabilities who receive public housing assistance. This compares with 9 percent of people 65 and older with severe disabilities.

Health Insurance

48%
Percentage of adults 15 to 64 with severe disabilities who receive government health coverage.

40%
Percentage of adults 15 to 64 with severe disabilities who have private health insurance coverage.

23%
Percentage of people with severe disabilities who receive Medicare coverage.

35%
Percentage of people 15 to 64 with severe disabilities who receive Medicaid, while 9 percent have dual coverage, receiving Medicare and Medicaid benefits.

21%
Percentage of people 15 to 64 with severe disabilities who were uninsured, not statistically different from the 21 percent of those with nonsevere disabilities.

Following is a list of observances typically covered by the Census Bureau's Facts for Features series:

Editor's note: The preceding data were collected from a variety of sources and may be subject to sampling variability and other sources of error. Facts for Features are customarily released about two months before an observance in order to accommodate magazine production timelines. Questions or comments should be directed to the Census Bureau's Public Information Office: telephone: 301-763-3030;  or e-mail: [email protected].

Contact: Public Information Office
301-763-3030
[email protected]

SOURCE U.S. Census Bureau