Disability News, Benefits, and Health Resources
Seventy million American adults live with a disability. Another 1.3 billion people worldwide (about the combined population of Europe and North America) share that experience, roughly 16 percent of the global population. Disabled World (DW), also known to many readers as Disability World, reports on the policies, research, benefits, and assistive technology that shape their lives. Coverage centers on the United States: Social Security and SSI payments, Medicare and Medicaid rules, accessibility law, and medical research relevant to American readers. International stories appear where they intersect with American policy or practice. Disabled World has been publishing since 2004 under the banner Towards Tomorrow. Learn more about us.
"Disability is the only minority group that anyone can join at any time." - a widely shared saying in the disability community, often attributed to American comedian Josh Blue.
Did You Know:
- 1 - Autism diagnoses have risen dramatically: about 1 in 31 eight-year-old children (3.2 percent) were identified with autism in 2022 CDC surveillance data, up from 1 in 36 in 2020 and just 1 in 150 when the CDC first began tracking it among children born in the early 1990s.
- 2 - Disability rises sharply with age: about 8.7 percent of adults aged 18 to 29 report a disability, climbing to 43.9 percent among adults aged 65 and older.
- 3 - Childhood disability tracks closely with family income - 18 percent of U.S. children in families below the poverty level report a disability, compared with 11 percent of children in families at or above 200 percent of the poverty level. View more Disability Statistics.
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Popular Pages
- Disability Loans and Grants: Financial assistance programs available for low-income families, seniors, and disabled students.
- Famous People with Disabilities: Lists of well-known people with various disabilities and conditions who contributed to society.
- Awareness Ribbon Colors: Guide to awareness ribbon colors for health, medical conditions, disability, and other causes.
- Adult Height to Weight Chart: Ideal weight-to-height ratio for adult females and males.
- Child to Teen Height to Weight Ratio Charts: Average height-to-weight ratios for children and teens organized by age.
Recent Disability News and Information
Transabled: Body Integrity Dysphoria and BIID Facts
An evidence based explanation of transabled identity, body integrity dysphoria, BIID research, ICD-11 criteria, and the ethical debate over elective disability. Published: 6 Sep 2026.
The 20 Most Accessible Countries for Disabled People
A ranked guide to the 20 most accessible countries for disabled people, with the criteria, laws, transport data and real barriers behind each place. Published: 4 Sep 2026.
Chemogenetics: Rewriting the Rules of Disability Care
Chemogenetics uses engineered receptors and inert drugs to switch neurons on or off, opening reversible new treatments for epilepsy, pain and paralysis. Published: 3 Sep 2026.
Political Ideology Shapes Religious Exemption Views
Research finds Americans judge religious exemption requests by political alignment, supporting claims that match their own ideology and doubting those that do not. Published: 31 Aug 2026.
Möbius Strip and Disability: Metaphor, Meaning, Uses
How the one-sided Möbius strip works as a metaphor for the social model of disability, dissolving the line between body, impairment, and society. Published: 31 Aug 2026.
Digital Accessibility Must Preserve the State of Our Work
Why digital accessibility must go beyond interface conformance to preserve procedural state, delivery status and case history for disabled and older users. Published: 28 Aug 2026.
Newly Updated Pages
Nothing About Us Without Us: A Disability Rights Idea: How Nothing About Us Without Us became a disability rights principle, from its Latin origins to the UN CRPD and its impact across policy and daily life.
Critiques of the Neurodiversity Movement by Ginny Russell: Ginny Russell examines critiques of the neurodiversity movement, from questions of representation and reductionism to defining who counts as neurodivergent.
Heavenly Home and the Words We Use to Describe It: How Heavenly Home, the All Brains Grow course by Lynette Louise and Louloua Smadi, uses bio-play and mindful language to help families support special needs.
Income-Based Student Loan Repayment: How the Plan Works: A proposed income-based student loan repayment plan would use automatic paycheck deductions capped at 15 percent of income to help borrowers avoid default.
Student Loan Debt Effect on Net Worth and Home Values: Research on 1,200 young adults shows how student loan debt lowers net worth, financial assets, and home values by age 30, with wider gaps for black graduates.