Both the current measure and the Census Bureau’s initial proposal rely on functional definitions of disability (e.g., the ability to see, hear, or walk) and exclude millions of Americans, including those with chronic illnesses, psychiatric disabilities, or conditions that affect them intermittently. Accurately estimating the number of disabled Americans is critical for informing public funding decisions, planning resource and program provision, enforcing regulations, and understanding the lived experiences of different groups, as Urban explores in new research.

The Urban Institute’s Disability Equity Policy Initiative and the Disability & Philanthropy Forum invite you to join a discussion on the need for an accurate count of disabled people in the US and the policy implications of proposed changes.

Keynote:

• Richard E. Besser, President and CEO, Robert Wood Johnson Foundation; Cochair, Presidents’ Council of the Disability & Philanthropy Forum

Panel 1 – Implications for Policymaking and Research:

• Scott Landes, Associate Professor of Sociology, Syracuse University
• Susan J. Popkin, Institute Fellow and Codirector, Disability Equity Policy Initiative, Urban Institute
• Kimberlyn Leary, Executive Vice President, Urban Institute (moderator)

Panel 2 – Importance to Disabled Communities:

• Meeta Anand, Senior Director, Census and Data Equity, Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights
• Dom Kelly, Cofounder, President, and CEO, New Disabled South
• Marlene Sallo, Executive Director, National Disability Rights Network
• Celina Barrios-Millner, Co–Vice President, Office of Race and Equity Research, Urban Institute (moderator)