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People with disabilities in the United States are a significant minority group, making up a fifth of the overall population and over half of Americans older than eighty. There is a complex history underlying the U. S. and its relationship with its disabled population, with great progress being made in the last century to improve the livelihood of disabled citizens through legislation providing protections and benefits. Most notably, the Americans with Disabilities Act is a comprehensive anti discrimination policy that works to protect Americans with disabilities in public settings and the workplace. In 1956, this definition was expanded by the Disability Insurance Program to describe disability as the "inability to engage in any substantial gainful activity by reason of any medically determinable physical or mental impairment which can be expected to result in death or to be of long continued and indefinite duration." The modern consensus on disability within governmental, medical, sociological realms in the United States is that it includes impairments that either physically or mentally incapacitate individuals from engaging in significant life activities, or the perception of possessing such an impairment. For instance, in a 2013 study, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) evaluated disability across five dimensions: vision, cognition, mobility, self care, and independent living. Specific conditions that fall under this umbrella vary circumstantially, however it is broadly accepted that disability includes, but is not limited to the following:

Progress towards disability justice came in hand with the civil rights movement in the latter half of the 20th century.

According to the 2000 U. S. Census, the African American community has the highest rate of disability in the United States at 20.8 percent, slightly higher than the overall disability rate of 19.4 percent. Given these statistics, it can be suggested that African Americans with disabilities experience the most severe underemployment, unemployment, and under education compared to other disability groups. For instance, the 2015 American Community Survey indicates that African Americans who have disabilities live in poverty at a rate of 1.5 to 2 times greater than other racial groups in America.

Data obtained in the National Longitudinal Survey of Youth indicates that Black men with disabilities encounter the greatest cumulative probability of being arrested by age 28, in contrast to others with either different gender, disability, or race status. With respect to African American women re entering society after serving time, a JHCPCU article identified disability, more specifically positive HIV/HCV status, as a major factor correlated with lowered usage of various modes of health care such as alternative and emergency care. Calls for civil rights and criminal justice reform with the Black Lives Matter movement have brought into public eye how Black individuals with disabilities disproportionately experience police violence. Instances cited as police brutality, such as the 2018 killing of Marcus David Peters, an unarmed black man experiencing a mental health crisis, has motivated legislation such as Virginia's Mental Health Awareness Response and Community Understanding Services (MARCUS) alert bill, which would necessitate that cases of individual mental distress be attended to by both police and mental health professionals. Viral footage of the killing of Walter Wallace, a black man with a history of mental illness who was killed during a police encounter, has helped bring the Black Disabled Lives Matter movement into the public eye.

Work published in the Journal of African American History suggest that the enduring consequences of segregation and separation of special education classrooms can potential have a negative compound effect on the quality of education for African American students with disabilities. An article in the Harvard Educational Review suggests that educational pedagogy designed to "cross pollinate" across race and disability coalitions is an effective way to combat exclusion that particularly impacts Black disabled children.

According to a study published in the Journal of Disability Policy, Black people with disabilities experience significantly higher unemployment and lower monthly wages compared to the overall disabled community and general population. A research paper in the Journal of Applied Rehabilitation Counseling reported that counseling professionals identified that disability status can limit employment prospects of Black and Latino offenders seeking work opportunities.

Disabled Black Americans face barriers to receiving comprehensive medical care to address their pre existing health conditions. In studies published in the Journals of Applied Gerontology it was noted that elderly African American women face a greater likelihood of acquiring disability in comparison their white counterparts, and additionally are more likely to rely on medicaid for coverage.

The Rehabilitation Act of 1973 requires all organizations that receive government funding to provide accessibility programs and services. A more recent law, the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 (ADA), which came into effect in 1992, prohibits private employers, state and local governments, employment agencies, and labor unions from discriminating against qualified individuals with disabilities in job application procedures, hiring, firing, advancement, compensation, job training, or in the terms, conditions, and privileges of employment. This includes organizations like retail businesses, movie theaters, and restaurants. They must make reasonable accommodation to people with different needs. Protection is extended to anyone with (A) a physical or mental impairment that substantially limits one or more of the major life activities of an individual, (B) a record of such an impairment, or (C) being regarded as having such an impairment. The second and third criteria are seen as ensuring protection from unjust discrimination based on a perception of risk, just because someone has a record of impairment or appears to have a disability or illness (e. g. features which may be erroneously taken as signs of an illness). Employment protection laws make discrimination against qualified individuals with a disability illegal and may also require the provision of reasonable accommodation. Reasonable accommodations includes changes in the physical environment like making facilities more accessible but also include increasing job flexibility like job restructuring, part time or modified work schedules or reassignment to vacant position. Though many hold attitudes that are more enlightened and informed than past years, the word "disability" carries few positive connotations for most employers. Negative attitudes by employers toward potential employees with disabilities can lead to misunderstanding and discrimination.

The disability paradox, a concept that recognizes the tendency for individuals without disabilities to perceive their disabled counterparts as having poorer livelihoods than disabled individuals would view themselves, is perpetuated in healthcare settings, with research published in the Handbook of Disability Studies identifying that practitioners award lower quality of life scores to disabled individuals than a member of the general population would. An article in the Kennedy Institute of Ethics Journal expresses that as a consequence physicians frequently go into consults with rigid, skewed perceptions of their patient's disabilities. Anita Ho, a bioethicist, argues that heightened practitioner confidence can harmfully impact disabled individuals in this regard as it increases the likelihood that patients may distrust their physicians or conversely place excessive faith in their care provider's insight into their condition. Disparate in healthcare access also impact disabled populations, for instance, most rural areas — especially in the Great Plains region — have little or no government organized medical support infrastructure for the permanently disabled indigent population which results in disability in the United States not only affecting individuals physically and mentally but socioeconomically as well.

Investigations on the "poverty and disability nexus" have consistently shown poverty and disability are correlated for all race ethnic groups within the United States. Financial stability of people with disabilities would decrease the dependence on governmental support programs. Studies have been done with the U. S. Census Bureau data to examine the high prevalence of disabilities among welfare recipients. Thirteen percent of families with children under the age of 18, who are also receiving welfare benefits, had at least one child with a disability. Research suggests higher education does impact employment and income opportunities for people with disabilities. It is also noted near equivocal employment opportunities and salaries for people with disabilities to their peers without disabilities. While only one fifth of people in the U. S. have at least a four year college degree, some studies note possessing a four year degree is the difference between absolute job security and joblessness. Some assistance ends if the beneficiary starts working. If that assistance (such as personal care or transportation) is necessary for work, it creates a welfare trap where it is not possible to work despite potentially being willing and able. Some programs do provide incentives to work.

Before the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act was passed, children with disabilities were at risk of not receiving a free, appropriate public education, but each act protecting the disabled individuals protects different criteria of which include differentiation in schools, the law by which schools must be up to date on the K 12 act, and equal service for the public who extend any services. For IDEA to apply, the child must first be determined to be able to benefit from public education. This benefit is not exclusively limited to school aged children but applies to children with disabilities from infancy. Due to the societal stigma of disability, children are sometimes treated like disabled children, and not included in activities in which other children were able to participate. However, for These individuals with any type of disablement such as learning disabilities or physical disabilities, the Americans with Disabilities Act covers them. This act ensures no one is discriminated against beyond their own home of which includes work, school, and anywhere in public. The places it does not cover will include sanctioned or private areas including one's home. Educators can hold students with disabilities to lower expectations, which impacts their future educational attainment. Although their future may be impaired the K 12 act is broad amongst education and Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act will help clarify. This act ensures individuals who attended schools, play on school sports teams, or attend any off or on campus events will be protected unless that school is not funded by the government. These students must be given compromises that other students may not receive due to their impairments. Under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act, the school district must provide every disabled child with an Individualized Education Plan (IEP). The IEP is compiled by a team of school administrators and guardians and may include a child advocate, counselors, occupational therapists, or other specialists. The Individuals with Disabilities Education Act ensures all fees for schooling are discharged, but these children must be approved under IDEA and must be in a certain category of disabilities. This act allows for any student or child to be assessed and is provided extra incentives that may apply to their condition. The IEP also evaluates the goals for the child and determines what needs to be done in order for those goals to be met. Children with disabilities who do not have a parent or guardian advocating on their behalf are not as well served in the education system as their peers with parent or guardian advocates. Transition preparation from K 12 education to post secondary education or career was initially written into IDEA to begin at age 12, but in the existing law, transition preparation does not begin until age 16. While this law provides a maximum age at which to begin transition preparation, students with disabilities have been known to receive transition preparation at a younger age, as the states might mandate a younger age, or the IEP team might determine a younger age is appropriate to begin the transition preparation of the student. Some students with disabilities have noted not receiving any transition preparation at all. The transition services are to be designed to be results oriented rather than outcome oriented. This is to ensure the transition services are designed for the student's success. In a 2007 study of a higher education institution located in the Midwestern United States, it was found that one third of students with disabilities felt their transition preparation was lacking. Many in this group were unaware of laws that pertained to disability and higher education. This leaves them without an understanding of their learning needs and unable to advocate for themselves.

Self advocacy plays an important role in the success of students with disabilities in higher education. Students with disabilities who are confident about their disability identity and self advocacy skills are more likely to disclose their disabilities and advocate for their needs when interacting with faculty and staff. Advocacy service is also provided to students as staff from different programs help instructors in college, understand the needs of disabled students who are attending their classes. So much so that when disable students need extra time to complete their course then some arrangements are made to accommodate such students. Students with disabilities who were embarrassed of their disability identity and did not understand their needs as learners looked to faculty and staff for solutions to accommodation needs. Higher education institutions do vary in process to obtain accommodations and accommodations provided.

More than 56 million Americans are enrolled in Medicare. Disabled citizens in the United States receive Medicare insurance and social security benefits to varying degrees. For those that seek employment for therapeutic or economic reasons, the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 is applicable. This act was an attempt to facilitate the large number of disabled servicemen returning from the front lines "to the extent necessary to prevent curtailment of opportunities for employment". Section 14(c) provides the employers with a method of paying their disabled employees less than applicable federal minimum wage. The Secretary of Labor issues certificates that align wages with the employee's productivity. as of 2012 there are 420,000 §14(c) employees being paid less than the minimum wage of $7.25 per hour. Administratively, the wage for disabled people was informally set at 75 percent. Those working in sheltered work centers have no minimum floor for their wage. The Fair Wages for Workers with Disabilities Act was proposed in 2013 to repeal §14(c) but was not passed.

It is illegal for California insurers to refuse to provide car insurance to properly licensed drivers solely because they have a disability. It is also illegal for them to refuse to provide car insurance "on the basis that the owner of the motor vehicle to be insured is blind", but they are allowed to exclude coverage for injuries and damages incurred while a blind unlicensed owner is actually operating the vehicle (the law is apparently structured to allow blind people to buy and insure cars which their friends, family, and caretakers can drive for them). In schools, the ADA requires that all classrooms must be wheelchair accessible. The U. S. Architectural and Transportation Barriers Compliance Board, commonly known as the Access Board, created the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 to help offer guidelines for transportation and accessibility for physically disabled people. About 12.6 percent of the U. S. population are individuals who have a mental or physical disability. Many are unemployed because of prejudiced assumptions that a person with disabilities is unable to complete tasks that are commonly required in the workforce. This became a major human rights issue because of the discrimination that this group faced when trying to apply for jobs in the U. S. Many advocacy groups protested against such discrimination, asking the federal government to implement laws and policies that would help individuals with disabilities.

The National Center on Disability and Journalism (NCDJ) provides resources and support to journalists and communications professionals covering disability issues. The center is headquartered at the Walter Cronkite School of Journalism and Mass Communication at Arizona State University.