International trends in disability program growth

The steep growth in the number of beneficiaries under the U.S. Social security Disability Insurance program during 1966-77 has aroused interest in learning whether programs abroad experienced similar expansion. This article presents the gross rate of disability incidence in five European programs and explores termination rates (for recovery and death) in three of those programs. Factors underlying growth patterns are also discussed. Findings show that the gross disability incidence rate increased in the Belgian and Finnish programs from the late 1960's and in the programs of the Federal Republic of Germany, the Netherlands, and France From the early 1970's, tapering off in all five countries studied by the mid-1970's. Gross recovery- and death-termination rates declined continuously in the Dutch and the Finnish programs. For all countries in this study, changes in the definition of statutory disability and changes in other program provisions, economic conditions, demographic patterns, and public awareness and attitudes were the major causes of expansion. Adequate explanations to account for the recent slackening off in program growth, however, are lacking.