Durham, NH – On February 9, 2021, StatsRRTC at the University of New Hampshire’s Institute on Disability released key findings from the Annual Disability Statistics Compendium. The annual report addresses critical gaps in national and state data related to people with disabilities by synthesizing complex data from numerous US federal agencies into accessible formats.
“The Compendium provides important benchmark data for the years to come, as we monitor the economic and social recovery from the Pandemic,” said Andrew Houtenville, professor of economics and principal investigator of the StatsRRTC.
The Compendium is designed to make finding and using disability statistics easier for individuals working on legislative and other matters relating to persons with disabilities.
Key findings from this year's Compendium include:
- In 2019, people with disabilities comprised 12.7% of the US population, up slightly from 12.6% in 2018.
- West Virginia had the highest proportion of people with disabilities in 2019, 19.8%, while Utah had the lowest, 9.1%
- In 2019, 38.8% of people with disabilities were employed, compared to 78.6% of people without disabilities—an employment gap of 39.8%pts.
- Prior to the pandemic, employment improved for people with disabilities in 2019—the employment gap between people with disabilities and people without disabilities narrowed, from 42%pts in 2018 to 39.8%pts in 2019.
- In 2019, the median earnings of people with disabilities was $39,297, while the median earnings of people without disabilities was $46,318.
- Binge drinking was lower for people with disabilities, 14%, compared to people without disabilities, 17.8%, in 2019.
Visit disabilitycompendium.org to download the Compendium, Supplement, and State Report and watch live recordings from the four-part Virtual Release of the Annual Disability Compendium, held February 9-12, 2021 from 12:00-1:15 pm ET.
For more information, contact Disability.Statistics@unh.edu or call toll-free at 866-538-9521.
The Compendium is funded by a grant from the National Institute on Disability, Independent Living, and Rehabilitation Research (NIDILRR), grant number 90RTGE0001. Key partners include Kessler Foundation, Association of University Centers on Disabilities (AUCD), and Mathematica Policy Research.
