FIND Disability Statistics
American Community Survey(ACS)
- Prevalence
- Employment Rate
- Not Working but Actively Looking for Work
- Full-Time / Full-Year Employment
- Annual Earnings
- annual Household Income
- Poverty
- Supplemental Security Income (SSI)
- Educational Attainment
- Veterans Service-Connected Disability
- Health Insurance Coverage (and Type)
Current Population Survey (CPS)
EEOC Charge Data
Report Dashboard
DOWNLOAD Disability
Status Reports
Disability and Compensation Variables Catalog
Browse or search across 11 major datasets for variables related to: disability and health conditions, work and employer characteristics including compensation such as pay and benefits. The catalog provides: variable names, survey questions, response categories and related variables that can be exported into an excel spreadsheet for your use.
Note: This tool is designed to provide an overview across multiple datasets - always use the dataset's codebook/dictionary to guide actual analysis. To view dataset descriptions and caveats click on dataset acronym.
Screen Reader Friendly Version
Development of this online tool is a part of the research activities of the Employer Practices Related to Employment Outcomes Among Individuals with Disabilities Rehabilitation Research and Training Center (EP-RRTC) under the direction of Kevin Hallock and Susanne Bruyere, funded to Cornell University by the U.S. Department of Education National Institute on Disability and Rehabilitation Research (NIDRR).
Acknowledgements: This tool was developed through the efforts of William Erickson, Zafar Nazarov, Arun Karpur, and web designers Jason Criss and Jeff Trondsen at Cornell University. Many thanks to graduate students Yeong Joon Yoon, Hee Man Park and Kyoung Jo O who developed much of the content used in this tool.
For questions or comments please contact disabilitystatistics@cornell.edu
Health and Retirement Study (HRS)
The Health and Retirement Study (HRS) is a large-scale longitudinal project that follows a representative sample of about 26,000 Americans over the age of 50 every two years. It studies the labor force participation and health transitions that individuals undergo toward the end of their work lives and the following years. It collects a wide variety of information including: disability, physical health and functioning, cognitive functioning, health insurance and health care expenditures as well as work, income, assets and pension plans. It is run by the University of Michigan and supported by the National Institute on Aging (NIA) and the Social Security Administration. NOTE: Due to the complex nature of the HRS survey, not all variables are documented in this tool. Identical questions are often asked of different subpopulations and/or surveys but associated with different variables. The surveys: "Disability for Reinterviews" and "Disability for Non-Reinterviews" are particularly complex. We strongly recommend using the HRS concordance (http://hrsonline.isr.umich.edu/index.php?p=concord) to identify similar variables. The HRS codebook provide useful information regarding skip patterns: http://hrsonline.isr.umich.edu/index.php?p=showcbk
This survey was fielded in the years: 1992-current. This codebook is based on 2008 data (the most current data available at the time of development).
Useful Links:
http://hrsonline.isr.umich.edu/ (Official Website)
http://hrsonline.isr.umich.edu/index.php?p=data (Access to the survey data)
Survey of Income and Program Participation (SIPP)
The Survey of Income and Program Participation (SIPP) is conducted by United States Census Bureau. It collects a wide variety of information including source and amount of income, labor force information, program participation and eligibility data, and general demographic characteristics. It measures the effectiveness of existing federal, state, and local programs, estimates future costs and coverage for government programs, such as food stamps and provides statistics on the distribution of income and measures of economic well-being in the U.S. NOTE: The SIPP employment/employer variables are focused on the "first" job. Identical questions asked RE "second job" - refer to SIPP data dictionary for variables.
This survey was fielded in the years: 1984-current. This codebook is based on 2004 data (the most current data available at the time of development).
Useful Links:
http://www.census.gov/sipp/ (Official Website)
http://www.census.gov/sipp/access.html (Access to the survey data)
http://digitalcommons.ilr.cornell.edu/edicollect/1195/ (User Guide)
Medical Expenditure Panel Survey (MEPS)
The Medical Expenditure Panel Survey (MEPS) is a set of large-scale annual surveys of families and individuals, their medical providers (doctors, hospitals, pharmacies, etc.), and employers across the United States. The MEPS collects data on the specific health services that Americans use, how frequently they use them, the cost of these services, and how they are paid for, as well as data on the cost, scope, and breadth of health insurance held by and available to U.S. workers. MEPS is conducted by Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality.
This survey was fielded in the years: 1996-current. This codebook is based on 2009 data (the most current data available at the time of development).
Useful Links:
http://www.meps.ahrq.gov/mepsweb/index.jsp (Official Website)
http://www.meps.ahrq.gov/mepsweb/data_stats/data_overview.jsp (Access to the survey data)
National Health Interview Survey (NHIS)
The National Health Interview Survey (NHIS) is an annual survey designed to monitor the health of the United States population through the collection and analysis of data on a broad range of health topics. A major strength of this survey lies in the ability to display these health characteristics by many demographic and socioeconomic characteristics. NOTE: NHIS catalog content are limited to only variables in the Sample Adult Questionnaire.
This survey was fielded in the years: 1957-current. This codebook is based on 2010 data (the most current data available at the time of development).
Useful Links:
http://www.cdc.gov/nchs/nhis.htm (Official Website)
http://www.cdc.gov/nchs/nhis/nhis_questionnaires.htm
(Access to the survey data)
http://digitalcommons.ilr.cornell.edu/edicollect/186/ (User Guide)
temp (NHIS-D)
temp
This survey was fielded in the years: temp. This codebook is based on temp data (the most current data available at the time of development).
Useful Links:
temp (Official Website)
temp (Access to the survey data)
temp (User Guide)
American Community Survey (ACS)
The American Community Survey (ACS) is an annual survey conducted by the U.S. Census Bureau that collects information on a sample of the institutionalized and non-institutionalized population. The survey covers a broad range of topics including: age, sex, race, family and relationships, income and benefits, health insurance, education, veteran status, disabilities, as well as housing characteristics. The objective of ACS is to provide federal, state and local governments with up to date information help to plan investments and services. Information from the survey helps determine how more than $400 billion in federal and state funds are distributed each year.
This survey was fielded in the years: 2000-current. This codebook is based on 2009 data (the most current data available at the time of development).
Useful Links:
http://www.census.gov/acs/www/ (Official Website)
http://www.census.gov/acs/www/data_documentation/data_main/ (Access to the survey data)
Current Population Survey (CPS)
The Current Population Survey (CPS) is a U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) survey, conducted by United States Census Bureau to collect estimates of employment, unemployment, earnings, hours of work, and other indicators. It collects a variety of demographic characteristics including age, sex, race, marital status, and educational attainment as well as employment related information such as occupation, industry, and class of worker. Supplemental questionnaires are occasionally funded to produce estimates on various topics including school enrollment, income, previous work experience, health, employee benefits, and work schedules. The "work limitation" question was first included in 1981 in the March Supplement and the 6 ACS based disability questions were added in 2008. NOTE: The CPS variables in this catalog are limited those collected in the CPS Basic Monthly survey and the March Supplement.
This survey was fielded in the years: 1940-current. This codebook is based on 2011 data (the most current data available at the time of development).
Useful Links:
http://www.census.gov/cps/
http://www.bls.gov/cps/home.htm (Official Website)
http://www.census.gov/cps/data/ (Access to the survey data)
Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System (BRFSS)
The Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System (BRFSS) is an annual survey designed by the Center of Disease Control (CDC) to collect uniform, state specific data on preventive health practices and risk behaviors linked to chronic diseases, injuries, and preventable infectious diseases that affect the adult population. NOTE: Catalog content is limited to the Core BRFSS survey that all states use, however there are 26 optional modules that a state can elect to include along with the core survey. Most of the optional modules focus on specific health issues (http://apps.nccd.cdc.gov/BRFSSModules/ModByCat.asp?Yr=2010).
This survey was fielded in the years: 1984-current. This codebook is based on 2010 data (the most current data available at the time of development).
Useful Links:
http://www.cdc.gov/BRFSS/ (Official Website)
http://www.cdc.gov/BRFSS/technical_infodata/surveydata.htm (Access to the survey data)
http://digitalcommons.ilr.cornell.edu/edicollect/1263/ (User Guide)
Rehabilitation Services Administration Records (RSA-911)
The Rehabilitation Services Administration RSA-911 is based on administrative annual data collected by each state Vocational Rehabilitation (VR) offices on clients with closed cases. It is intended to provide a description of accomplishments and progress made under the Rehabilitation Act of 1973. RSA-911 data includes information regarding demographics, disability, interventions, reason for closure, employment status, sources of financial support. Some limited work-related information (e.g. income, hours worked per week, etc.) are reported at both application for services and at closure.
This survey was fielded in the years: 1991-current. This codebook is based on 2009 data (the most current data available at the time of development).
Useful Links:
http://www2.ed.gov/rschstat/eval/rehab/911-data.html (Official Website)
Contact RSA (Access to the survey data)
Decennial Census 2000 (Census)
The Decennial Census takes place every 10 years counting every resident in the United States and is mandated by Article I, Section 2 of the Constitution. The data collected by the U.S. Census Bureau determine the number of seats each state has in the U.S. House of Representatives and is also used to distribute billions in federal funds to local communities. The 2000 Census shows the number of residents in the U.S by geographical area, race, age, sex, and disability, etc. Note the 2010 decennial census only utilized the "Short Form" survey that only collected basic information such as age, sex, race and ethnicity. The annual American Community Survey (ACS) took over the collection of the more detailed information traditionally collected in the Decennial Census "long form survey".
This survey was fielded in the years: 1790-current. This codebook is based on 2000 data (the most current data available at the time of development).
Useful Links:
http://www.census.gov/main/www/cen2000.html (Official Website)
http://www.census.gov/main/www/cen2000.html (Access to the survey data)
http://digitalcommons.ilr.cornell.edu/edicollect/187/ (User Guide)
Panel Study of Income Dynamics (PSID)
The Panel Study of Income Dynamics (PSID) is a biennial longitudinal household survey that began in 1968. It follows a nationally representative sample of over 18,000 individuals living in 5,000 families in the US. Information on these individuals and their descendants has been collected continuously for over 40 years. The PSID collects data regarding employment, income, wealth, expenditures, health, marriage, childbearing, child development, philanthropy, education, and numerous other topics. NOTE: PSID catalog content focuses on variables RE the head of family and their main job. Similar information also collected for spouse but under different variable names - refer to PSID codebook for spouse variables.
This survey was fielded in the years: 1968-current. This codebook is based on 2007 data (the most current data available at the time of development).
Useful Links:
http://psidonline.isr.umich.edu/ (Official Website)
http://simba.isr.umich.edu/data/data.aspx (Access to the survey data)
http://digitalcommons.ilr.cornell.edu/edicollect/1207/ (User Guide)
National Longitudinal Transition Study-2 (NLTS2)
The National Longitudinal Transition Study-2 (NLTS-2) was an annual longitudinal study funded by the U.S. Department of Education and documents the experiences of a national sample of students receiving special education who were 13 to 16 years of age in 2000 as they moved from secondary school into adult roles. The study collects information regarding a wide range of topics, including high school coursework, extracurricular activities, academic performance, postsecondary education and training, employment, independent living, and community participation. NOTE: The NLTS-2 is a restricted-use dataset and requires potential users to apply for access (http://www.nlts2.org/data_tables/datatable_training.html ). Limited tables can be accessed at the data access link below.
This survey was fielded in the years: 2000-2010. This codebook is based on 2007 data (the most current data available at the time of development).
Useful Links:
http://www.nlts2.org/ (Official Website)
http://www.nlts2.org/data_tables/index.html
(Access to the survey data)