Census 2000 showed disability rising with age

Disability rates rose with age for both sexes, but significant differences existed between men and women. For people under 65 years old, the prevalence of disability among men and boys was higher than among women and girls. In contrast, disability rates were higher
for women than men aged 65 and older.

 

Specifically, in 2000, the disability rate was 7.2 percent for boys 5 to 15 years old and 4.3 percent for girls the same age. Nearly two thirds of all children with disabilities were boys. Census 2000 found 1.7 million boys this age with one or more disabilities, compared with 949,000 girls this age. Among people aged 16 to 64 in the civilian noninstitutionalized population, 19.6 percent of men and 17.6 percent of women reported one or more disabilities. Among people 65 and older, the disability rate was 43.0 percent for women and 40.4 percent for men. In this age group, 59.7 percent of people with disabilities were women. However, 58.2 percent of all people aged 65 and older were women. In the civilian noninstitutionalized population, people 65 and older were much more likely than people of working age (16 to 64) to report a sensory, physical, mental, or selfcare disability, or a disability causing difficulty going outside the home.

 

While only 6.4 percent of working-age adults experienced difficulty going outside the home alone to shop or visit the doctor, 20.4 percent of older adults reported these problems. Physical disabilities affected 6.2 percent of the working-age population and 28.6 percent of older adults. About 3.8 percent of working-age adults reported difficulties in learning, remembering, or concentrating (a mental disability), compared with 10.8 percent of older adults. The prevalence of a self-care disability was more than 5 times greater among older adults (9.5 percent) than among people of working age (1.8 percent). Also, the occurrence of sensory disabilities was more than 6 times greater among older adults than workingage people, 14.2 percent compared with 2.3 percent.

 

U.S. Census Bureau