MR/DD Data Brief vol. 3 no. 2 June 2001

In 1994 and 1995, the National Health Interview Survey included a Disability Supplement (NHIS-D) that collected extensive information about disabilities among the individuals sampled as part of the annual census-based household interview surveys. The NHIS focuses on the civilian, noninstitutionalized population in the United States, describing demographic characteristics, health status, functional limitations, and supports and services used. We identified 3,076 individuals in the combined 1994/1995 NHIS-D sample as having mental retardation and/or developmental disabilities (MR/DD), estimating that 3,887,158 (plus or minus 1.9%) non-institutionalized Americans meet the criteria for one or both of these categories, a prevalence rate of 1.49%. An additional 245,720 people with MR/DD are estimated to be living in nursing homes, psychiatric facilities or congregate care (institutional) settings of four or more residents. This issue of MR/DD Data Brief describes people with MR/ DD living in the community in terms of demographic characteristics and economic status. Those characteristics are analyzed to determine how they are interrelated, and are compared to those of the general population. An estimated 32.6% of noninstitutionalized U.S. residents with MR/DD live in households with incomes below the poverty level, compared with 12.9% of all other residents. Demographic Characteristics of Persons with MR/DD Living in Their Own Homes or With Family Members: NHIS-D Analysis