Publication Date

8-2-2024

Abstract

Over the coming decades, physicians in the US can expect to see more patients with disabilities as medical advances extend the lives of persons with complex congenital or early-onset conditions and as the population ages with a higher incidence of multimorbidities and functional impairments. As reported by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the overall age-adjusted disability prevalence in 2021 among adults aged 18 years or older was 27.2%, with estimates of 12.1% for mobility disability, 6.1% for hearing disability, and 4.8%for vision disability. In 2021, however, only 63.2%of persons with any disability aged 18 to 44 years reported having a routine health checkup over the past year, as did 80.9% of those aged 45 to 64 years and 90.7%of those aged 65 years or older.

To receive routine health care, patients with disabilities require accessible health care settings and effective communication modalities that accommodate their functional needs. Although federal disability antidiscrimination laws have mandated equitable health care for more than 50 years, glaring disparities in disability access persist. The growing patient population with disabilities warrants revisiting efforts to improve access to health care.

A recent US Supreme Court case, Acheson Hotels, LLC v Laufer, left open the question of whether organizations that serve the public must include disability accessibility information on their websites. In light of this uncertainty, we argue that health care organizations should include disability accessibility information online. Doing so facilitates patients’ decision-making as they seek health care services and helps remedy disparities in accessing health care. Moreover, organizations providing this information might have an advantage in attracting the growing population of patients with disabilities.

Document Type

Article

Publication Title

JAMA Health Forum

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