E-patients With a Disability or Chronic Disease

Part 1. 34 Million Adults Live With a Disability or Chronic Disease

People with chronic conditions are likely to be older and less educated than the general population.

Large surveys of Americans generally show that about one-fifth of the adult population live with disabilities or serious chronic conditions.3 Different definitions of disability and chronic illness are sometimes employed in these surveys, but they are relatively consistent in finding that a notable portion of Americans live with these conditions.

Profile of the Chronic Conditions Population

In a Pew Internet & American Life nationwide phone survey in the fall of 2006, 17%  of American adults answered “yes” to the following question: “Does any disability, handicap, or chronic disease keep you from participating fully in work, school, housework, or other activities, or not?”4 That translates to about 34 million adults living with chronic conditions. This population is characterized by a comparatively greater portion of people age 50 and older and those who do not use a computer on a regular basis.

A report by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the Merck Company Foundation estimates that 80% of older Americans live with one or more chronic conditions.5 As the population ages, the number of Americans with chronic conditions is certain to grow, consuming more health care and health information along the way.

Notes

3 In the 2004 American Community Survey, 35 million Americans age 16+ were estimated to be living with a “long-lasting sensory, physical, mental, or emotional condition.” (See Table 181 of the Statistical Abstract of the United States: 2007.)

4 In a survey conducted in 2002, 15% of adults answered yes to that question. See: “Internet Health Resources” (Pew Internet Project: July 16, 2003). Available at: http://www.pewinternet.org/PPF/r/95/report_display.asp

5 “The State of Aging and Health in America 2007” (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and The Merck Company Foundation). Available at: http://www.cdc.gov/aging/

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Copyright 2012 Pew Internet & American Life Project

The Pew Research Center's Internet & American Life Project is one of seven projects that make up the Pew Research Center. The Center is supported by The Pew Charitable Trust.