Why are Individuals with Disabilities a "Covered Population"?

In 20218 more than 40 million people in the United States were living with a disability, according to the U.S. Census Bureau. According to a 2021 Pew Research Center survey, even as majorities of these Americans report having certain technologies, the digital divide between those who have a disability and those who do not remains:

• Some 62 percent of adults with a disability say they own a desktop or laptop computer, compared with 81 percent of those without a disability.
• Just 72 percent of adults with a disability say they own a smartphone, compared with 88 percent of those without a disability.
• Seventy-two percent of adults with a disability report having high-speed internet at home, compared with 78 percent of adults without a disability.
• Roughly a quarter of Americans with disabilities (26 percent) say they have high-speed internet at home, a smartphone, a desktop or laptop computer, and a tablet, compared with 44 percent of those who report not having a disability.
• Americans with disabilities are three times as likely as those without a disability to say they never go online (15 percent versus 5 percent). And while three-quarters of Americans with disabilities report using the internet on a daily basis, this share rises to 87 percent among those who do not have a disability.
• Older Americans are more likely than younger adults to report having a disability. And these older age groups generally have lower levels of digital adoption than the nation as a whole.