People with Disabilities: a Perspective

Statistics from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Disability Impacts All of Us, show that:

• 70 million adults in the US live with a disability, which is 28.7% (or 1 in 4 people)
• Types of functional disabilities (some people may have more than one type):
  • 13.9% cognition: have difficulty concentrating, remembering, or making decisions
  • 12.2% mobility: have serious difficulty walking or climbing stairs
  • 7.7% independent living: have difficulty doing errands alone
  • 6.2% deaf: are deaf or have serious difficulty hearing
  • 5.5% vision: have blindness or serious difficulty seeing, even with glasses
  • 3.6% self-care: have difficulty dressing or bathing

Statistics from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Disability & Health U.S. State Profile Data for Texas (Adults 18+ years of age), show that:

• 6,004,166 adults in Texas live with a disability, which is 29% (or 1 in 4 people)
• Types of functional disabilities (some people may have more than one type):
  • 14% cognition: have difficulty concentrating, remembering, or making decisions
  • 13% mobility: have serious difficulty walking or climbing stairs
  • 7% independent living: have difficulty doing errands alone
  • 6% deaf: are deaf or have serious difficulty hearing
  • 6% vision: have blindness or serious difficulty seeing, even with glasses
  • 4% self-care: have difficulty dressing or bathing

Assistive technology (AT) turns a disability into an ability. For example, closed captioning lets someone who can't hear read or see what is being said.

Assistive technology helps people with disabilities. Learn about different disabilities and barriers below. You'll find more information on how your efforts improve access to digital resources.

Some assistive technology can be used by everyone. Think about how we use ramps, escalators, and automatic doors! Check out what assistive technology could do for you, including AT on your own device!

Accommodations can include both assistive technology (AT) and converted content. For example, a transcription provides what is said, and closed captioning on a video player is an accommodation.

Without a transcription, closed captioning does not make a video accessible. Without a transcription, closed captioning cannot translate text into another language (e.g., English to Spanish).

Check out some examples of different ways to accommodate people with disabilities.

Visual Disabilities (e.g. blindness, color blindness, low vision, color blindness, macular degeneration, glaucoma, diabetic retinopathy and retinitis pigmentosa)

Hearing Disabilities (e.g. hard of hearing and deafness)

Motor Disabilities (e.g. hemiplegia, palsy, paraplegia, quadriplegia, cerebral palsy, multiple sclerosis, muscular dystrophy, Lou Gehrig's disease and Parkinson's disease)

Cognitive Disabilities (e.g. ADHD, ASD, Down syndrome, dyslexia, mental health disabilities, memory impairments, speech, multiple sclerosis and seizure disorders)

• WAI: Perspectives: Explore the Impact and Benefits for Everyone [Videos]
• WAI: How People with Disabilities Use the Web - Diversity in Web Use
• Android devices
• Apple iPad (iOS)
• Apple iPhone (iOS)
• Apple Mac (macOS)
• Windows devices

• (October 28, 2016) Tarleton State University News & Information. Tarleton students use new Maker Spot to create orthotic for stroke patient.
• York, Rachel Diane. (October 14, 2016) Dassault Systems SolidWorks Corp. Gig ‘Em: How One Aggie is Changing the Way Students Navigate Campus.