291045
Economic wellbeing and life satisfaction among working and non-working adults with disabilities
Alexis Henry, ScD, OTR/L,
Disability, Health and Employment Policy Unit, Center for Health Policy and Research, University of Massachusetts Medical School, Shrewsbury, MA
Monika Mitra, PhD,
Lurie Institute for Disability Policy, Heller School of Social Policy and Management, Brandeis University, Waltham, MA
John Gettens, PhD,
Disability, Health and Employment Policy Unit, Center for Health Policy and Research, University of Massachusetts Medical School, Shrewsbury, MA
Jianying Zhang, MD, MPH,
Center for Health Policy and Research, University of Massachusetts Medical School, Shrewsbury, MA
Background: Working-age adults with disabilities in the US are more than twice as likely to live in poverty as those without disabilities; poverty rates are greater among non-working people with disabilities compared to those who work. Poverty-associated stress compounds the challenges faced daily by people living with disability. Methods: We examined satisfaction with finances, worries about meeting monthly expenses, and overall life satisfaction among working and non-working adults with disabilities using a 2010 Massachusetts Behavioral Risk Factors Surveillance System (BRFSS) follow-up survey of working-age adults with disabilities (n=882). The MA BRFSS Disability and Employment Follow-Up Survey gathered information on work participation, work-related barriers and multiple dimensions of economic wellbeing among people with disabilities. Results: Thirty-seven percent of survey respondents with disabilities reported currently working. Logistic regression analyses showed that, controlling for demographic variables (age, gender, race/ethnicity, marital status and education), health status, need for personal or routine care, and insurance status, working respondents were significantly more likely to report satisfaction with finances (OR=1.99, 95% CI=1.07-3.72) and significantly less likely to report being worried about meeting expenses (OR=0.37, 95% CI=0.19-0.68) than non-working respondents. Having private vs. public insurance was also significantly associated with satisfaction with finances; poorer health and the need for personal or routine care were significantly associated with worrying about meeting expenses. Employment was not significantly related to overall life satisfaction. Conclusions: Employment contributes to enhanced economic well-being and decreased financial worries among people with disabilities. Implications of finding for services for people with disabilities will be discussed.
Learning Areas:
Biostatistics, economics
Social and behavioral sciences
Learning Objectives:
Describe factors associated with economic wellbeing among working-age people with disabilites.
Discuss the importance of employment in enhancing economic wellbeing of people with disabilities and strategies for promoting employment
Discuss the potential of using follow-up surveys to the BRFSS for research on important issues related to health and wellbeing of people with disabilities
Keyword(s): Disability, Poverty
Presenting author's disclosure statement:Qualified on the content I am responsible for because: I have worked extensively with survey data and have expertise in qualitative data analysis. I have been the principal investigator on multiple studies related to employment and health care experiences of people with disabilities.
Any relevant financial relationships? No
I agree to comply with the American Public Health Association Conflict of Interest and Commercial Support Guidelines,
and to disclose to the participants any off-label or experimental uses of a commercial product or service discussed
in my presentation.
