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- Accessibility is a major issue for people with disabilities who wish to be vaccinated against COVID-19.
- A 2020 NPR analysis found people with developmental disabilities died from COVID-19 at higher rates.
- In February, a nonprofit detected accessibility issues at 81 of 94 U.S. vaccine registration websites.
In a recent US Census Bureau survey, about 82% of adults with disabilities reported receiving a COVID-19 vaccine, while about 85% of adults without said the same. While a 3 point difference may not seem like much, it translates into millions of people not getting vaccinated, a huge problem when it comes to mitigating the spread of the coronavirus.
There are several reasons why fewer people with disabilities – including people with physical, developmental, intellectual, psychiatric and emotional disabilities – are vaccinated.
Some may not be able to get vaccinated for medical reasons, such as allergies to ingredients in mRNA vaccines and the Johnson & Johnson vaccine. Or they may face barriers such as a lack of accessible transportation (like Ubers or wheelchair-accessible buses) or inaccessible mass vaccination sites.
Vaccination is not always available to people who are deaf or hard of hearing, who may need information in American Sign Language, or to people who are blind or visually impaired, who may need resources in large print or Braille.
And many vaccine registration websites are inaccessible to people with disabilities. WebAIM, a nonprofit that provides web accessibility services, said in February it had detected accessibility issues in all vaccine registration websites except 13 of 94 in the United States. .
Experts say there is a lack of confidence
There may be a deeper reason why people with disabilities do not get vaccinated: widespread ableism in the medical profession.
“We saw it very explicitly at the start of the pandemic when rationing plans explicitly stated that they would ration the care of people with disabilities if there was a demand greater than the supply of care, beds, etc. ventilators, etc., ”Kara Ayers, an assistant professor in the Department of Pediatrics at the University of Cincinnati and an associate director of the University’s Center for Excellence in Developmental Disabilities told Insider.
“Most people with disabilities can tell you many stories of times when healthcare professionals made wrong assumptions about them or simply provided substandard care,” Ayers said. “So now we are asking this community to trust the medical profession to take a new vaccine – and do it quickly!” “
Some people with disabilities postpone care for these reasons, Ayers said. “Many don’t schedule mammograms because they don’t think they will be accessible,” Ayers said. “I have also heard of people delaying care because no one will help them get to the examination table.”
People with intellectual disabilities died from COVID-19 at higher rates in 2020
An NPR analysis of data from two states in June 2020 found that people with intellectual disabilities and autism were dying at higher rates than the rest of the population. About twice as many deaths in Pennsylvania as other residents who contracted the virus. In New York, they died 2.5 times more than others who contracted the virus.
And 60% of COVID-19 deaths in England in 2020 were people with disabilities, a death rate roughly twice that of the general population, according to data from the Office for National Statistics.
While vaccinations alone cannot fully correct these disparities, leveling the immunization rates of people with and without disabilities could be a first step in reducing death rates.
Ayers said creating more diverse vaccination sites could help improve vaccination rates among people with disabilities. “For some, community pop-ups are a great way to tackle challenges such as finding support and / or transportation,” Ayers said. “For others, getting vaccinated in their doctor’s office is the only way to feel comfortable.”
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