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Persons using assistive technology might not be able to fully access information in this file. For assistance, please send e-mail to: mmwrq@cdc.gov. Type 508 Accommodation and the title of the report in the subject line of e-mail. Prevalence of Work Disability -- United States, 1990Work disability, defined as the inability to perform work as a result of a physical, mental, or other health condition, costs approximately $111.6 billion each year in direct and indirect medical costs and lost wages (1). National health objectives for the year 2000 are to increase the span of healthy life for persons in the United States and to reduce the proportion of persons experiencing disability from chronic conditions (as defined by CDC's National Health Interview Survey) to a maximum of 8% (baseline: 9.4% in 1988) (objective 17.2) (2). This report presents national and state-specific prevalence rates of work disability in the United States for 1990 and compares rates with those for 1980 (3). Data on work disability among U.S. residents have been collected by the Bureau of the Census since 1970. In this analysis, rates of work disability were calculated for persons aged 16-64 years using data from the 1990 census. Work disability was defined on the census questionnaire as the inability to perform work resulting from a physical, mental, or other health condition of 6 months' duration or longer; categories are nonsevere (limitation in the type or amount of work a person can perform) and severe (inability to perform work of any type). In 1990, an estimated 12.8 million persons aged 16-64 years had a work disability: 6.6 million were severe and 6.2 million, nonsevere. Rates of work disability varied widely among the states, ranging from 61.8 (New Jersey) to 126.2 (West Virginia) per 1000 population. Prevalence rates were highest in West Virginia, Kentucky (114.3), Arkansas (111.7), Louisiana (102.9) and Mississippi (109.8) (Table_1). From 1980 to 1990, the prevalence of work disability declined nationally, from 85.2 to 81.5 per 1000 persons, and rates of severe and nonsevere work disability decreased by 3.9% and 4.7%, respectively. Rates of work disability declined for the District of Columbia and 29 states, primarily in the South, and increased for 21, primarily in the Midwest and West. For states with high rates of severe disability in 1980, rates remained high in 1990. The five states with the highest rates of severe disability also had high rates of nonsevere work disability. Reported by: MP LaPlante, PhD, Disability Statistics, Rehabilitation Research, and Training Center, Institute for Health and Aging, Univ of California at San Francisco. National Institute on Disability and Rehabilitation Research, US Dept of Education. Applications Br, Div of Surveillance and Epidemiology, Epidemiology Program Office; Disabilities Prevention Program, Office of the Director, National Center for Environmental Health; and National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health, CDC. Editorial NoteEditorial Note: Although age-specific, all-cause mortality in the United States has steadily decreased since the late 1940s, self-reported disability increased from 1962 through 1984 (4). In addition, even though the findings in this report indicate national declines from 1980 to 1990 in the estimated rate of work disability, the proportion of U.S. residents affected by work disability and the variability in rates of work disability among states remain high. These findings are consistent with other studies (1,4). Potential explanations for the declining trend in work disability and for the state-specific variability include changing patterns in self-reporting of health conditions, variations in categorization of functional disability based on job benefits and conditions (e.g., job retraining or reassignment, vocational rehabilitation, early retirement, or workers' compensation) (5), demographic factors (e.g., age, socioeconomic status, educational level, and marital status), and economic factors (e.g., the rate of unemployment in a particular state, opportunities for employment for persons with disabilities, and retirement patterns) (4-9). In this report, the finding that rates of work disability increased in nearly half the states from 1980 to 1990 may reflect the change in age distribution in the United States. Age is a strong determinant of work disability: as the average age of the population increases there is usually a concomitant increase in the prevalence of work disability (4). In addition, the finding that states with the highest prevalence of severe work disability also had high rates of nonsevere work disability suggests that similar factors may influence rates of severe and nonsevere work disability. The state-specific estimates of work disability in this report can provide guidance to states in planning and monitoring efforts to reduce the impact of work disabilities. These efforts should include collaboration among national, state, and local public health officials along with business and industry leaders to evaluate policies on job training or reassignment, vocational rehabilitation, and workers' compensation to ensure optimal retraining and rehabilitation of persons with disabilities. This level of collaboration is essential in implementing the guidelines of the Americans with Disabilities Act *. References
* Public Law 101-336.
TABLE 1. Rate* of work disability among persons aged 16-64 years and estimated
numbers of persons with any work disability, by state -- United States, 1990
===========================================================================================
No. persons º No. persons
with any work º with any work
State Rate disability º State Rate disability
--------------------------------------------+-------------------------------------------
Alabama 96.8 245,000 º Montana 97.0 47,000
Alaska 66.3 23,000 º Nebraska 71.4 68,000
Arizona 83.1 188,000 º Nevada 83.4 66,000
Arkansas 111.7 159,000 º New Hampshire 72.7 53,000
California 74.2 1,422,000 º New Jersey 61.8 311,000
Colorado 78.4 167,000 º New Mexico 88.3 82,000
Connecticut 63.8 136,000 º New York 74.3 866,000
Delaware 77.4 33,000 º North Carolina 87.3 371,000
District of º North Dakota 69.7 26,000
Columbia 84.0 35,000 º Ohio 90.1 618,000
Florida 86.6 676,000 º Oklahoma 101.6 195,000
Georgia 88.4 368,000 º Oregon 100.1 178,000
Hawaii 65.9 44,000 º Pennsylvania 82.6 617,000
Idaho 90.4 54,000 º Rhode Island 85.8 55,000
Illinois 68.9 500,000 º South Carolina 91.1 199,000
Indiana 79.0 277,000 º South Dakota 78.1 32,000
Iowa 75.8 128,000 º Tennessee 97.3 304,000
Kansas 72.0 108,000 º Texas 76.0 813,000
Kentucky 114.3 265,000 º Utah 72.9 72,000
Louisiana 102.9 266,000 º Vermont 79.0 29,000
Maine 101.5 79,000 º Virginia 75.4 299,000
Maryland 70.5 221,000 º Washington 90.9 280,000
Massachusetts 72.0 284,000 º West Virginia 126.2 142,000
Michigan 90.4 536,000 º Wisconsin 73.2 224,000
Minnesota 73.9 204,000 º Wyoming 72.7 20,000
Mississippi 109.8 171,000 º
Missouri 85.4 271,000 º Overall 81.5 12,821,000
--------------------------------------------+--------------------------------------------
*Per 1000 persons.
Source: Bureau of the Census, 1990.
===========================================================================================
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