Disability

Census 2000 counted 49.7 million people with some type of long lasting condition or disability. [1] They represented 19.3 percent of the 257.2 million people who were aged 5 and older in the civilian noninstitutionalized population - or nearly one person in five (see Table 1). [2] Within this population, Census 2000 found:

• 9.3 million (3.6 percent) with a sensory disability involving sight or hearing.
• 21.2 million (8.2 percent) with a condition limiting basic physical activities, such as walking, climbing stairs, reaching, lifting, or carrying.
• 12.4 million (4.8 percent) with a physical, mental, or emotional condition causing difficulty in learning, remembering, or concentrating.
• 6.8 million (2.6 percent) with a physical, mental, or emotional condition causing difficulty in dressing, bathing, or getting around inside the home.
• 18.2 million of those aged 16 and older with a condition that made it difficult to go outside the home to shop or visit a doctor (8.6 percent of the 212.0 million people this age).
• 21.3 million of those aged 16 to 64 with a condition that affected their ability to work at a job or business (11.9 percent of the 178.7 million people this age).

[1] The estimates in this report are based on responses from a sample of the population. As with all surveys, estimates may vary from the actual values because of sampling variation or other factors. All statements made in this report have undergone statistical testing and are significant at the 90-percent confidence level, unless otherwise noted.

[2] In this report, the population universe for people with disabilities excludes people in the military and people who are in institutions.

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