Disability Factoids

Notable people with disabilities

• Harriet Tubman, who had epilepsy, helped approximately 300 slaves find freedom through the Underground Railroad.
• In 1985, Wilma Mankiller became the first woman to hold a top-ranking position in an American Indian tribal government when she was picked to lead the Cherokee Nation. She has a rare form of muscular dystrophy.
• Albert Einstein, one of the greatest minds of the 20th century, is said to have had a learning disability.
• Actor Michael J. Fox was diagnosed with Parkinson's disease in 1991 and has since become an advocate for stem-cell research.
• Stevie Wonder, legendary singer, producer, activist and pianist, has been blind since birth.
• Comedian and Oscar-winning actor Robin Williams was diagnosed with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder.
• President Franklin Delano Roosevelt's legs were paralyzed from polio. Few Americans were aware of his disability, as the press did not report it.
• Ludwig van Beethoven gradually lost his hearing, a disability that did not prevent him from composing some of the most influential symphonies of all time.
• Actor Tom Cruise is dyslexic.
• Sen. Max Cleland, D-Ga., is a multiple amputee after injuries he sustained while fighting in the Vietnam War.
• New York Gov. David Paterson, who took office after the resignation of Eliot Spitzer, is legally blind.
• "60 Minutes" correspondent Mike Wallace was diagnosed with depression.
• General George Patton, who led the Allies in the Battle of the Bulge in World War II, had a learning disability.

Interesting FYIs

Almost 3 in 10 of today's 20-year-olds will acquire a disability before reaching age 67. (Source: Social Security Basic Facts, July 2004)

Seventy-two percent of the private-sector work force has no long-term disability insurance. (Source: Social Security Basic Facts, July 2004)

Approximately 10 percent of the world's population, 650 million people, live with a disability. People with disabilities are the world's largest traditionally underrepresented group. This figure is increasing through population growth, medical advances and the aging process. (Sources: United Nations, World Health Organization)

America's Disability Market at a Glance

More than 1 in 5 Americans, approximately 54 million, have a disability, making people with disabilities the largest traditionally underrepresented group in the nation. (Sources: U.S. Census Bureau, 2000; The National Organization on Disability/Harris Interactive - Survey of Americans with Disabilities, 2004)

Thirty percent of the nation's 69.6 million families have at least one member with a disability. (Sources: U.S. Census Bureau, 2000; The National Organization on Disability/Harris Interactive - Survey of Americans with Disabilities, 2004)

Twenty-five percent of all customers have a disability or have a close friend or relative who has a disability. (Sources: U.S. Census Bureau, 2000; The National Organization on Disability/Harris Interactive - Survey of Americans with Disabilities, 2004)

Sixty-one percent of people with disabilities are of working age, between 16 and 64 years old. (Sources: U.S. Census Bureau, 2000; The National Organization on Disability/Harris Interactive - Survey of Americans with Disabilities, 2004)

More than 8 percent of U.S. children and teenagers--5.2 million--have a physical or mental disability. This reflects a sharp growth in the population of young Americans with disabilities over the past decade. (Sources: U.S. Census Bureau, 2000; The National Organization on Disability/Harris Interactive - Survey of Americans with Disabilities, 2004)

Twenty-four percent of people ages 0--19, 27 percent of people ages 20--39, 28 percent of people ages 40­--55, and 21 percent of people age 55 and older first have the onset of disability, demonstrating relatively equal rates of disability by age. (Source: The National Organization on Disability/Harris Interactive - Survey of Americans with Disabilities) 

People with disabilities are coalescing as an economic and social power. In 1994, for the first time, a majority of people with disabilities said they felt a strong sense of identity with other people with disabilities. (Sources: U.S. Census Bureau, 2000; The National Organization on Disability/Harris Interactive - Survey of Americans with Disabilities, 2004)

Key Consumer Traits of People With Disabilities

Assistive technology plays a critical role in the lives of people with disabilities. Without assistive technology, 77 percent of people with disabilities would be unable to "take care of themselves, hold meaningful employment or leave their home to attend social gatherings." (Sources: U.S. Census Bureau, 2000; Witeck-Combs Communications/Harris Interactive, 2005; The National Organization on Disability/Harris Interactive - Survey of Americans with Disabilities, 2004)

Seventy-two percent of people with disabilities are likely to upgrade a product to the latest model. (Sources: U.S. Census Bureau, 2000; Witeck-Combs Communications/Harris Interactive, 2005; The National Organization on Disability/Harris Interactive - Survey of Americans with Disabilities, 2004)

Sixty-two percent of people with disabilities say they are likely to do business with companies that have a commitment to diversity and equal treatment of employees. (Sources: U.S. Census Bureau, 2000; Witeck-Combs Communications/Harris Interactive, 2005; The National Organization on Disability/Harris Interactive - Survey of Americans with Disabilities, 2004)

Urban areas of the U.S. have a higher concentration of people with disabilities. The top five cities where people with disabilities live (in descending order) are Detroit; Baltimore; Miami; Newark, N.J.; and Buffalo, N.Y. (Sources: U.S. Census Bureau, 2000; Witeck-Combs Communications/Harris Interactive, 2005; The National Organization on Disability/Harris Interactive - Survey of Americans with Disabilities, 2004)

The disability community is comprised of individual groups, each with unique healthcare and quality-of-life challenges. (Sources: U.S. Census Bureau, 2000; Witeck-Combs Communications/Harris Interactive, 2005; The National Organization on Disability/Harris Interactive - Survey of Americans with Disabilities, 2004)

Influences on the Buying Behavior of People with Disabilities

Three-quarters (73 percent) of people with disabilities are heads of household. (Sources: Within Our Reach: Findings and Recommendations of the National Task Force on Technology and Disability, 2000; Simmons Market Research Bureau, 2000)

Individuals with disabilities exhibit strong brand loyalty toward products affiliated with disability-related causes. In order to tap into this brand loyalty, there must be a logical relationship between the company, its values, customer, community, employee and the cause. (Sources: Within Our Reach: Findings and Recommendations of the National Task Force on Technology and Disability, 2000; Simmons Market Research Bureau, 2000)

Home Life for People With Disabilities

?Nearly half (48 percent) of all people with disabilities are the principal shoppers in their household. (Source: Simmons Market Research Bureau, 2000)

Forty-six percent of people with disabilities are married. (Source: Simmons Market Research Bureau, 2000)

Fifty-eight percent of people with disabilities their own homes. (Source: Simmons Market Research Bureau, 2000)

A total of 9.4 percent of the 1.6 million full-time freshmen enrolled at 3,100 institutions of higher education in the United States in 1998 reported living with some kind of disability. (Source: Simmons Market Research Bureau, 2000)

Entertainment /Travel Habits of People With Disabilities

People with disabilities spend $13.6 billion on 31.7 million trips each year. (Sources: Travel Industry Association of America/Harris Interactive/Open Doors/Society for Accessible Travel and Hospitality Survey, 2002; The National Organization on Disability/Harris Interactive - Survey of Americans with Disabilities, 2004)

About $3.3 billion is spent by travelers with disabilities each year in the airline industry. (Sources: Travel Industry Association of America/Harris Interactive/Open Doors/Society for Accessible Travel and Hospitality Survey, 2002; The National Organization on Disability/Harris Interactive - Survey of Americans with Disabilities, 2004)

Travelers with disabilities each year spend $4.2 billion in the lodging industry. (Sources: Travel Industry Association of America/Harris Interactive/Open Doors/Society for Accessible Travel and Hospitality Survey, 2002; The National Organization on Disability/Harris Interactive - Survey of Americans with Disabilities, 2004)

A 12 percent increase in revenues in the hotel and hospitality industry is attributed, in part, to consumers with disabilities. (Sources: Travel Industry Association of America/Harris Interactive/Open Doors/Society for Accessible Travel and Hospitality Survey, 2002; The National Organization on Disability/Harris Interactive - Survey of Americans with Disabilities, 2004)

Four out of 10 members of the traveling public are Americans with disabilities and their companions. (Sources: Travel Industry Association of America/Harris Interactive/Open Doors/Society for Accessible Travel and Hospitality Survey, 2002; The National Organization on Disability/Harris Interactive - Survey of Americans with Disabilities, 2004)

Projected Growth of Disability Segment

In the next 10 years, the number of Americans over 50 will increase by 40 percent. (Source: Witeck-Combs Communications)

Between 2000 and 2030, the numbers of Americans older than 65 will more than double, from 34.8 million to more than 70.3 million. (Source: Witeck-Combs Communications)

Americans 50 and older represent 25 percent of the population but control 50 percent of the nation's buying power and 75 percent of its assets, representing $150 billion in annual discretionary income and billions more for necessities such as housing and food. (Source: Witeck-Combs Communications)

About 30 percent of all Americans acquire a disability prior to retirement age. (Source: Witeck-Combs Communications)

More than 7 out of every 10 Americans will acquire some sort of disability by the time they reach the age of 75. (Source: Witeck-Combs Communications)

Employment

Thirty-five percent of working-age people with disabilities are working, compared to 78 percent of those without disabilities. Two-thirds of unemployed people with disabilities say they would like to work but cannot find jobs. (Source: United Nations)

Companies report that employees with disabilities have better retention rates, reducing the high cost of turnover. After one year of employment, the retention rate of people with disabilities is 85 percent. (Source: United Nations)

A person with a disability is one who has a physical or mental impairment that substantially limits one or more major life activities, has a record of such an impairment, or is regarded as having such an impairment, according to the Americans with Disabilities Act. (Source: EEOC)

A U.S. survey of employers conducted in 2003 found that the cost of accommodations for people with disabilities was only $500 or less; 73 percent of employers reported tha