Partnering with disabilityled organizations to prepare and respond to public health emergencies

Over a quarter of adults in the United States live with a disability, increasing their risk for severe outcomes from coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19). Additionally, people with disabilities face continuous barriers in accessing COVID-19 vaccinations. Disabilityled organizations are catalytic partners for public health departments to reach and provide services to and build partnerships with people with disabilities. For this reason, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Foundation funded three disabilityled organizations, two nationally focused and one locally focused, to partner with state and local public health agencies to identify and address barriers to COVID-19 vaccination and emergency response planning in their communities. These partners identified key strategies for inclusion in emergency response and vaccination planning, including creating accessible materials and messaging, ensuring the accessibility of vaccination sites, and addressing the historical mistrust between people with disabilities and health systems. Through this funding, 59 partnerships between disabilityled organizations and disability or public health partners were formed with 26 memorandums of understanding being executed. This project provides actionable recommendations and illustrates that disabilityled organizations are key public health partners in planning for and implementing strategies that benefit people with disabilities and the community more broadly.