On Disabilities

Remote work opened some doors to workers with disabilities. But others remain shut

4:22pm October 21, 2022

by Mary Yang

Workplaces have generally become more accommodating for people with disabilities in the last five years, according to a new survey. But some disability rights activists say challenges persist.

Dr. Devika Bhushan went public about her bipolar disorder while serving as California's Acting Surgeon General. She writes: "I have never been more convinced that to dispel mental health stigma, professionals who feel comfortable need to speak our truths — to spread the understanding that mental health conditions, especially serious ones, are treatable."

Health & Safety

Coming out about my bipolar disorder has led to a new deep sense of community

12:35pm October 15, 2022

by Devika Bhushan

Dr. Devika Bhushan went public with her diagnosis to help dispel stigma. In the process, she says, she's forged bonds with hundreds touched by mental illness.

Bennett Markow looks to his big brother, Eli (right), during a family visit at UC Davis Children's Hospital in Sacramento. Bennett was born four months early, in November 2020.

The heartbreak and cost of losing a baby in America

9:50am September 22, 2022

by Lauren Weber

Even after their babies died, hospital bills kept coming. These parents of fragile, very sick infants faced exorbitant bills — though they had insurance. "The process was just so heartless," one says.

Margaret Davis (left) and Delisa Williams (right) became acquainted when they moved into the Salvation Army Center of Hope shelter, just outside Charlotte, N.C. Both women receive federal benefits, but the monthly amounts aren't high enough for them to be able to rent an apartment.

High rents outpace federal disability payments, leaving many homeless

5:01am September 15, 2022

by Fred Clasen-Kelly

Supplemental Security Income, a federal program meant to be a financial floor for people unable to work, hasn't kept pace with inflation. Many recipients are homeless, unable to save for an apartment.

Even though the sisters hope a successful drug treatment for their family's form of dementia will emerge, they're now planning for a future without one. "There's a kind of sorrow about Alzheimer's disease that, as strange as it seems, there's a comfort in being in the presence of people who understand it," Ward says.

With early Alzheimer's in the family, these sisters decided to test for the gene

5:00am September 12, 2022

by Jon Hamilton

For some people, a rare genetic mutation makes dementia inescapable. Three sisters have decided to confront fate with a genetic test and have joined a research project on possible treatments.

People take part in a disability pride parade on July 14, 2019, in central Rome.

Health & Safety

How to talk about disability sensitively and avoid ableist tropes

8:50pm August 08, 2022

by Shruti Rajkumar

When it comes to disability, a lot of ableist language and tropes are perpetuated by the media. Here's what experts have to say about how to talk about disability.

Georgia Linders got sick with COVID in the spring of 2020 and never recovered. Her ongoing battle with long COVID has prevented her from working. She spends her days advocating for COVID longhaulers like herself and painting, one of the few activities tha

Health & Safety

Millions of Americans have long COVID. Many of them are no longer working

2:01pm July 31, 2022

by Andrea Hsu

An estimated 4 million workers in the U.S. are struggling to work due to debilitating symptoms from long COVID. The government is urging employers to provide accommodations to keep them on the job.

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Shruti Rajkumar sitting in a wheelchair at a museum in Washington, D.C.

The ADA was a victory for the disabled community, but we need more. My life shows why

5:01am July 29, 2022

by Shruti Rajkumar

The Americans With Disabilities Act turns 32 this year, and while its anniversary is one to be celebrated, it also calls for a reflection on what more can be done for disability rights.

Lucille Brooks, a retiree who lives in Pittsford, New York, was sued in 2020 for nearly $8,000 by a nursing home that had taken care of her brother. The nursing home dropped the case after she showed she had no control over his money or authority to make

Health & Safety

Nursing homes are suing friends and family to collect on patients' bills

4:43pm July 28, 2022

by Noam Levey

Debt lawsuits — a byproduct of America's medical debt crisis — can ensnare not only patients but also those who help sick and older people be admitted to nursing homes, a KHN-NPR investigation finds.

Poet, writer and visual artist Naomi Ortiz

A national fellowship that supports disabled artists has a new class for 2022

10:00am July 27, 2022

by Neda Ulaby

Fellows of Disability Futures for this year honors disabled lineages in art, which is to say, traces the links between elders and emerging artists across the country.