Poverty & Disability: By the numbers

Reports and Publications

December 2017

David Schlinkert, Alissa Heyer



According to the 2016 U.S. Census, 44.3 million people in the United States (14 percent) were living in poverty, and 12.8 percent of the population reported having at least one disability. The median U.S. household income in 2016 was $57,617. However, among households that included someone with a disability, the median income was more than 25 percent lower - $41,600. The federal poverty guidelines have increased slightly between 2015 and 2017, but still remain low.