Statistics on Growing Number of Disabling Illnesses and Injuries

Introduction

Do you know how many working-age Americans become disabled every year? Every month? Or even every day. As of today, there's an easy way to keep track by visiting DisabilityCounter.org Created by the Council for Disability Awareness (CDA), this new tool graphically illustrates the growing number of working-age Americans who experience a disabling illness or injury lasting for 30 days or longer.

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And why is this so important?

The Social Security Administration reports that just over one in four of today's 20-year-olds will become disabled before reaching age 67. Yet, in a serious disconnect from reality, workers severely underestimate their chances.

The CDA's 2010 Consumer Disability Awareness Study "The Disability Divide", revealed that although an overwhelming number of employees believe a disability could happen to anyone at any time, they are in denial that it could happen to them.

CDA President Barry Lundquist says Americans need to be better educated about the likelihood that illness or injury could prevent them from working for a prolonged period of time and about the importance of protecting income from that risk.

"There is agreement among working Americans that their ability to earn an income is more important than any other resource in maintaining financial security," said Lundquist. "However, despite that importance, protecting income is not top of mind for most working Americans."

As evidence, the Social Security Administration reports that 67 percent of employees are not covered by any type of private long-term disability insurance.

From the Disability Counter's innovative homepage, visitors can access tools to improve their "disability IQ." They can:

• 1) take the Disability Awareness Quiz.
• 2) get health tips on how to reduce the chances of suffering a disability.
• 3) complete their Personal Disability Quotient (PDQ) to estimate their own individual risk of becoming disabled and to determine the value of their future income.

The CDA suggests that visitors to the site help protect friends, family members and co-workers by spreading awareness about the risk and impact of disability.

The Disability Counter can be used in a number of ways. Financial advisers can use it to raise their clients' awareness of just how often disability strikes. Employers can use it to educate employees about the disability risk and ways to guard against it. And individuals can use it to get more educated about disability and take responsibility for their own financial security.

Attribution/Source(s):
This quality-reviewed publication was selected for publishing by the editors of Disabled World (DW) due to its significant relevance to the disability community. Originally authored by Council for Disability Awareness, and published on 2011/05/17 (Edit Update: 2022/04/01), the content may have been edited for style, clarity, or brevity. For further details or clarifications, Council for Disability Awareness can be contacted at disabilitycanhappen.org. NOTE: Disabled World does not provide any warranties or endorsements related to this article.