RL

Immigrants With Disabilities

Challenges Faced

  • People with disabilities face increased discrimination, leading to employment and pay gaps.
  • Immigrants with disabilities face compounded disadvantages, especially women, those with limited English, or with nonpermanent status.
  • Fear of immigration enforcement may prevent immigrant workers from enforcing workplace rights.

Research Focus

  • Limited research exists on nonelderly adult immigrants with disabilities.
  • This brief focuses on characteristics of this population using 2015-2019 American Community Survey (ACS) data.
  • Sample: nonelderly immigrants ages 18-64 (N = 1,422,274).
  • Disability defined as having one or more of: ambulatory, cognitive, independent-living, vision, hearing, or self-care difficulty.

Key Findings

  • 5.6% of immigrant adults ages 18-64 have a disability, 2.3% have multiple disabilities.
  • Main disabilities: ambulatory (2.7%), cognitive (1.9%), and independent-living (1.8%) difficulties.
  • Black Latinx immigrants have the highest disability rate (10.2%), Asian adults the lowest (4.2%).
  • 35.3% of immigrants with disabilities have limited English proficiency.
  • 30.7% of immigrants with disabilities are from Mexico.
  • 49.3% of nonelderly immigrants with disabilities have low family incomes (under 200% of the federal poverty level).
  • 41.4% of immigrants with disabilities are employed; 30.0% in service occupations.
  • 12.7% receive Supplemental Security Income (SSI).
  • 30.3% of noncitizen and 9.5% of naturalized citizens are uninsured; overall, 18.8% are uninsured.

Policy Implications

  • Understanding characteristics of working-age immigrants with disabilities is essential to address their needs.
  • Strategies include increased access to public services, job quality improvements, and community models for disability inclusion.

Barriers and Exclusion

  • Immigrants with disabilities face stigma and socioeconomic disadvantages.
  • Noncitizens face systematic exclusion from federal safety net programs due to the Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act of 1996.
  • Green card holders (in the US < 5 years), undocumented immigrants, and temporary visa holders face program restrictions.
  • Immigrants with disabilities can qualify for SSI but must meet complex requirements.
  • Discrimination, lack of accommodations, and misconceptions exacerbate stress.

SSI Program

  • Federal program providing monthly cash assistance to low-income individuals who are 65+, blind, or have disabilities.
  • Disability requires medically determinable physical or mental impairment that reduces ability to do "substantial, gainful" activity, is likely to result in death, or is expected to last 12+ months.
  • Eligibility requires limited income/resources and meeting other criteria.
  • Noncitizens must meet additional immigration-related criteria, including being a “qualified” immigrant.

Prevalence and Disability Type

  • 5.6% of immigrants ages 18-64 have a disability; 2.3% have multiple disabilities.
  • Lower than US-born immigrants of the same ages (5.6% vs. 11.6%).
  • Common disabilities: ambulatory (2.7%), cognitive (1.9%), independent-living (1.8%).

Disability by Age Group

  • Older immigrants (50-64) are more likely to have disabilities (10.5%) than younger immigrants (18-34) (2.9%).
  • Ambulatory difficulty is most common among older immigrants (6.1%).
  • Cognitive difficulty is most common among younger immigrants (1.4%).

Race and Ethnicity

  • Black Latinx immigrants have the highest disability rate (10.2%).
  • Non-Latinx Asian adults have the lowest disability rate (4.2%).

Citizenship, Origin, and Language

  • 55.3% of immigrants with disabilities are naturalized citizens.
  • Top origin country: Mexico (30.7%).
  • 35.3% have limited English proficiency.
  • Spanish is the most common language among those with limited English (69.1%).

Income Characteristics

  • 49.3% of immigrants with disabilities have low family incomes (under 200% FPL).
  • Naturalized citizens with disabilities are less likely to have low incomes (42.6%) than noncitizens (57.7%).

Employment

  • 41.4% of immigrants with disabilities are employed.
  • Service occupations are common (30.0%).

Supplemental Security Income (SSI)

  • 12.7% of immigrants with disabilities receive SSI.
  • Naturalized citizens are more likely to receive SSI (16.0%) than noncitizens (8.6%).

Uninsured Rates

  • 18.8% of immigrants with disabilities are uninsured.
  • Noncitizens are more likely to be uninsured (30.3%) than naturalized citizens (9.5%).

Ensuring Support

  • Ensuring immigrants with disabilities have necessary supports to reduce marginalization is crucial.

Health Care

  • People with disabilities use health care at higher rates and are more likely to have chronic conditions.
  • High uninsured rates among noncitizens with disabilities pose challenges to health care access.

Barriers and Access

  • Immigrants face challenges such as administrative burdens, discrimination, language barriers, and immigration concerns.

Addressing Gaps

  • Efforts to improve economic supports include removing the five-year bar and increasing outreach for eligible immigrants.

Double Minority Challenge

  • The term "double minority challenge" is oversimplified; marginalized identities exacerbate adverse outcomes.
  • Black and Latinx immigrants face higher risks of discrimination, detention, and deportation.

Workplace Factors

  • Immigrants with disabilities are more likely to be employed than US-born adults with disabilities, possibly due to a lack of access to public supports.
  • Immigrants are at increased risk of occupational fatalities and injuries.

Workplace Strategies

  • Strategies to mitigate workplace risks include stronger enforcement of workplace protections.
  • Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act and the ADA protect against disability-based discrimination.
  • Adequate dissemination of information on EEOC and other organizations is important.
  • Other strategies include paid sick leave, health insurance, and expanded workforce development programs (e.g., WIOA).

WIOA

  • Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (WIOA) provides access to training, employment, education, and support services.
  • Title I and Title II of WIOA serve immigrants, with Title II serving all people regardless of immigration status.

Data and Methods

  • Weighted estimates from 2015-2019 ACS data were used.
  • Disability was defined based on reported difficulties: ambulatory, cognitive, independent-living, vision, hearing, and self-care.

Limitations

  • The disability measure may not capture the full range or severity of disabilities.
  • Cross-sectional analyses limit conclusions about causality.
  • There may be measurement error associated with reported receipt of SSI.