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The State of Aging and Health in America Report
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Healthy Aging
Healthy Aging Report
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Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
Healthy Aging Program
4770 Buford Highway, N.E., Mailstop K-45
Atlanta, GA 30341-3717

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Healthy Aging - Disability

Indicator Summary

 

Disability

  • This indicator measures the percentage of older adults who report having a disability.
  • In this report, disability is defined as an affirmative response to either of the following two BRFSS questions: “Are you limited in any way in any activities because of physical, mental, or emotional problems?” or “Do you now have any health problem that requires you to use special equipment, such as a cane, a wheelchair, a special bed, or a special telephone?”

2009 State-by-State Report Card
Disability (%)

Make Comparisons
Healthy People 2010 Targets
Does not include territories
Location Data C.I.† Rank ‡ Grade §
United States 35.3 (34.8 – 35.7) ~ ~
Alabama 37.2 (34.3 – 40.0) 35 Middle Third (middle 33%)
Alaska 43.1 (35.8 – 50.4) 51 Lower Third (lowest performing 33%)
Arizona 35.0 (31.8 – 38.1) 18 Middle Third (middle 33%)
Arkansas 37.5 (34.6 – 40.5) 36 Middle Third (middle 33%)
California 35.4 (33.6 – 37.2) 22 Middle Third (middle 33%)
Colorado 35.2 (33.2 – 37.2) 21 Middle Third (middle 33%)
Connecticut 32.6 (30.2 – 35.0) 8 Upper Third (top performing 33%)
Delaware 30.6 (27.6 – 33.5) 3 Upper Third (top performing 33%)
District of Columbia 38.8 (35.5 – 42.1) 42 Lower Third (lowest performing 33%)
Florida 32.4 (30.5 – 34.4) 7 Upper Third (top performing 33%)
Georgia 37.7 (34.9 – 40.5) 39 Middle Third (middle 33%)
Hawaii 29.7 (27.1 – 32.3) 2 Upper Third (top performing 33%)
Idaho 35.7 (33.0 – 38.4) 24 Middle Third (middle 33%)
Illinois 34.0 (31.4 – 36.6) 14 Middle Third (middle 33%)
Indiana 35.8 (33.6 – 38.0) 26 Middle Third (middle 33%)
Iowa 32.1 (29.8 – 34.3) 5 Upper Third (top performing 33%)
Kansas 37.5 (36.2 – 38.8) 36 Middle Third (middle 33%)
Kentucky 39.2 (36.5 – 41.8) 46 Lower Third (lowest performing 33%)
Louisiana 38.9 (36.7 – 41.0) 43 Lower Third (lowest performing 33%)
Maine 35.5 (33.4 – 37.7) 23 Middle Third (middle 33%)
Maryland 35.0 (32.4 – 37.5) 18 Middle Third (middle 33%)
Massachusetts 33.4 (31.5 – 35.3) 11 Upper Third (top performing 33%)
Michigan 34.6 (32.6 – 36.5) 17 Middle Third (middle 33%)
Minnesota 36.6 (34.2 – 39.0) 33 Middle Third (middle 33%)
Mississippi 41.3 (39.4 – 43.2) 49 Lower Third (lowest performing 33%)
Missouri 36.3 (33.4 – 39.2) 31 Middle Third (middle 33%)
Montana 36.3 (34.0 – 38.7) 31 Middle Third (middle 33%)
Nebraska 35.8 (33.9 – 37.8) 26 Middle Third (middle 33%)
Nevada 37.1 (33.3 – 41.0) 34 Middle Third (middle 33%)
New Hampshire 34.0 (31.4 – 36.7) 14 Middle Third (middle 33%)
New Jersey 29.5 (27.5 – 31.5) 1 Upper Third (top performing 33%)
New Mexico 37.5 (35.3 – 39.7) 36 Middle Third (middle 33%)
New York 35.7 (33.1 – 38.3) 24 Middle Third (middle 33%)
North Carolina 37.7 (35.4 – 39.9) 39 Middle Third (middle 33%)
North Dakota 33.6 (30.9 – 36.3) 12 Upper Third (top performing 33%)
Ohio 36.0 (33.9 – 38.0) 29 Middle Third (middle 33%)
Oklahoma 41.3 (39.2 – 43.5) 49 Lower Third (lowest performing 33%)
Oregon 35.8 (33.1 – 38.4) 26 Middle Third (middle 33%)
Pennsylvania 32.3 (30.3 – 34.4) 6 Upper Third (top performing 33%)
Rhode Island 32.0 (29.6 – 34.5) 4 Upper Third (top performing 33%)
South Carolina 38.7 (36.3 – 41.1) 41 Lower Third (lowest performing 33%)
South Dakota 39.3 (36.9 – 41.8) 47 Lower Third (lowest performing 33%)
Tennessee 35.1 (32.4 – 37.8) 20 Middle Third (middle 33%)
Texas 36.1 (33.6 – 38.6) 30 Middle Third (middle 33%)
Utah 38.9 (36.6 – 41.1) 43 Lower Third (lowest performing 33%)
Vermont 33.1 (30.8 – 35.4) 9 Upper Third (top performing 33%)
Virginia 33.8 (30.7 – 36.9) 13 Upper Third (top performing 33%)
Washington 39.0 (37.5 – 40.4) 45 Lower Third (lowest performing 33%)
West Virginia 39.7 (37.0 – 42.4) 48 Lower Third (lowest performing 33%)
Wisconsin 33.3 (29.7 – 36.9) 10 Upper Third (top performing 33%)
Wyoming 34.0 (31.7 – 36.3) 14 Middle Third (middle 33%)
   
Upper Third (top performing 33%) = Upper Third (top performing 33%)
Middle Third (middle 33%) = Middle Third (middle 33%)
Lower Third (lowest performing 33%) = Lower Third (lowest performing 33%)
   
† A confidence interval (CI) describes the level of uncertainty of an estimate and specifies the range in which the true value is likely to fall. The State of Aging and Health in America online report uses a 95% level of significance, which means that 95% of the time, the true value falls within these boundaries. When comparing prevalence of variables across states or years, we recommend the use of confidence intervals. If the confidence intervals overlap, the difference is not statistically significant.
   
‡ Rankings are based on the relative numeric scores for each indicator, with a ranking of "1" indicating the highest rank.
   
§ Grades are calculated as tertiles (thirds) and show state performance relative to all other states.
   
~ Data not available.
   
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