Washington, D.C. — The National Association of Councils for Developmental Disabilities (NACDD) is proud to support the National Institutes of Health (NIH) designation of people with disabilities as a population with health disparities.
Eliseo J. Pérez-Stable, M.D., Director of the National Institute on Minority and Health Disparities and Robert Otto Valdez, Ph.D., Director of the Agency for Healthcare Research announced on Tuesday that people with disabilities are now considered by the NIH to be a population with health disparities.
“The designation of individuals with disabilities as a population with health disparities is a success for the disability community,” said Robin Troutman, Deputy Director of the National Association of Councils on Developmental Disabilities. “We are thankful that NIH is recognizing the importance of supporting research for the disability community and the barriers and discrimination that people with disabilities face within the healthcare system.” Now, researchers can be supported by the NIH to study the intersection of disability and health care.
“NIMHD and other NIH institutes launched a new research program to better understand the health disparities faced by people with disabilities who are also a part of other populations designated as having health disparities,” said Dr. Pérez-Stable in his announcement. NIH defines health disparities are gaps in the quality of health and health care that mirror differences in socioeconomic status, racial and ethnic background, and education level.
This designation comes alongside the recent Department of Health and Human Services proposed changes to their Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act regulations and in the week of the 50th anniversary of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973.
