Disability in U.S. Households, 2000-2010: Findings from the National Health Interview Survey

Understanding the demographic structure of households containing members with disabilities is of key importance in policy planning for populations with disabilities at state and national levels. Yet, most, but not all, previous family-level studies of disability have excluded persons living alone or with unrelated persons (e.g., a housemate or an unmarried partner) because they are not considered families. To address this gap, the authors utilize National Health Interview Survey data to produce household-level estimates of disability using a detailed household type variable that includes households omitted from previous reports. Findings indicate that one-person households made up 24.7% of all households with an adult aged 18-64 with a disability, and 42.9% of all households with an adult aged 65 or older with a disability. Including nonfamily households provides a clearer picture of the association between living arrangements and disability in the U.S.