2023 State Report for County-Level Data: Prevalence

Acknowledgements

Special thanks to the following individuals who have contributed to the success of this effort: Deb Brucker, Erin Dame, Kate Filanoski, Kim Phillips, Karen Volle, Romy Eberle, and Toni Sumner-Beebe.

Funding for this publication is made possible by:

The Rehabilitation Research and Training Center on Disability Statistics and Demographics (StatsRRTC), funded by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Administration for Community Living National Institute on Disability, Independent Living, and Rehabilitation Research (NIDILRR), grant number 90RTGE0001. The information developed by the StatsRRTC  does not necessarily represent the policies of the Department of Health and Human Services, and you should not assume endorsement by the Federal Government (Edgar, 75.620 (b)).

The StatsRRTC is a part of the Institute on Disability at the University of New Hampshire. The Institute on Disability/UCED (IOD) was established in 1987 to provide a university-based focus for the improvement of knowledge, policies, and practices related to the lives of people with disabilities and their families and is New Hampshire’s University Center for Excellence in Disability (UCED). Located within the University of New Hampshire, the IOD is a federally designated center authorized by the Developmental Disabilities Act. Through innovative and interdisciplinary research, academic, service, and dissemination initiatives, the IOD builds local, state, and national capacities to respond to the needs of individuals with disabilities and their families.

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Copyright 2023. Institute on Disability. University of New Hampshire.      

 

 

 

2023 Virginia Report for County-Level Data: Prevalence

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Rehabilitation Research and Training Center on

Disability Statistics and Demographics

A NIDILRR-Funded Center

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Introduction

Overview. Statistics are a powerful tool in research, policymaking, program evaluation, and advocacy. They are used to frame issues, monitor current circumstances and progress, judge the effectiveness of policies and programs, make projections about the future, and predict the costs of potential policy changes.

In the United States, disability statistics – information about the population with disabilities and about the government programs that serve people with disabilities - are often difficult to find. Numerous government agencies generate and publish disability statistics, and as a result, the data are scattered across various federal government documents and websites.

The Annual Disability Statistics State Reports for County-Level Data, one of the five publications included in the Institute on Disability’s Annual Disability Statistics Collection – referred to as “the Collection” – is a summary of statistics about people with disabilities and about the government programs which serve them. The State Reports for County-Level Data provides county-level prevalence, employment, and poverty statistics for each state. 

Additional publications included in the Collection are: 

  • The Annual Disability Statistics Compendium, available both in hard copy and online (at www.disabilitycompendium.org), presents key overall statistics on topics including the prevalence of disability, employment among persons with disabilities, rates of participation in disability income and social insurance programs, and other statistics. 
  • The Annual Disability Statistics Supplement covers 150 additional tables that analyze the content found in the Compendium by age, gender, and race/ethnicity. 
  • The Annual Report on People with Disabilities in America, which graphically represents trends of key statistics from the Compendium.  
  • Infographics in the Collection are curated through partnerships with organizations that specialize in the intersectionality of disability with other identities.  
  • The Annual Disability Statistics Standard Errors Companion, new to the Collection this year, details the standard errors of percent and standard errors of frequency for applicable tables in the Compendium. 

All publications are available online at https://disabilitycompendium.org. The Annual Report on People with Disabilities in America and the infographics are also available in print format. 

The State Reports for County-Level Data on Prevalence is intended to be an online complement to Section 1: Population and Prevalence of the Annual Disability Statistics Compendium and Annual Disability Statistics Supplement, providing greater detail within each state. This report can be used to compare county-level statistics between counties in any given state or states.

The following report provides county-level statistics for Virginia. In this report, the prevalence of people with disabilities is presented as the number of people with disabilities in a given state and county per total state and county populations, respectively. Counts and percentages are provided in tables and maps.

Specific to Virginia, the state chosen for this report, sentences providing interpretation and context for prevalence statistics are included in the Interpretation section. A short glossary of terms is also provided at the end of the report explaining the statistics that are illustrated in each sentence.

Notes on the data. The State Reports for County-Level Data on Employment is composed of data from the U.S. Census Bureau’s American Community Survey (ACS) 5-year data. We used the most recent data wherever available.

ACS 5-year includes data from 2021 and data from the four previous years. 5-year data is collected over a longer period of time than 1-year data, providing larger sample sizes and increased reliability for less populated areas and small population subgroups.

In the ACS, people are identified as having a disability based on responses to a series of six questions asking about having difficulties with vision, hearing, ambulation, cognition, self-care, and independent living (see glossary for further details).

Exploring other topics. The UNH Institute on Disability is dedicated to thorough research and has explored topics such as understanding the factors associated with the health disparities experienced by people with intellectual disabilities through the Health Disparities Project (https://iod.unh.edu/health-disparities-project) and career self-management through job crafting for people with physical and mild cognitive disabilities (https://iod.unh.edu/career-self-management-through-job-crafting-people-physical-mild-cognitive-disabilities). 

Additional Resources. A companion Annual Report is available, providing graphical representations of key findings. The Annual Report highlights trend data related to specific tables in the Compendium and Supplement. The statistics presented here, as well as those in the Compendium, Supplement, and Annual Report, can be viewed and downloaded at https://disabilitycompendium.org/.

Help navigating any of the resources described here can be found in the Frequently Asked Questions section at https://disabilitycompendium.org/faq. Assistance interpreting and locating additional statistics is available via our toll-free number, 866-538-9521, or by email at disability.statistics@unh.edu. For more information about our research projects, please visit https://www.researchondisability.org.

Suggested Citation. Paul, S., Rogers, S., Bach, S., & Houtenville, A. (2023). 2023 State Report for Virginia County-Level Data: Prevalence. Durham, NH: University of New Hampshire, Institute on Disability.

Interpretation

The following statements are designed to help understand the 2021 county-level statistics from Virginia that are presented:

 

  • For the number of people with and without disabilities:
    • The range of total people across Virginia counties, also known as the difference between the largest and smallest counts of people across Virginia counties, was 1,130,213.
      • The county with the greatest number of total people was Fairfax (1,132,442 people).
      • The county with the least number of total people was Highland (2,229 people).
    • The average number of total people across all counties was 62,842.
    • The median, also known as the middle-most number, of total people across Virginia counties was 25,698

 

  • For the number of people with disabilities:
    • The range of people with disabilities across Virginia counties, also known as the difference between the largest and smallest counts of people with disabilities across Virginia counties, was 81,814.
      • The county with the greatest number of people with disabilities was Fairfax (82,321 people).
      • The county with the least number of people with disabilities was Highland (507 people).
    • The average number of people with disabilities across all counties was 7,476.
    • The median, also known as the middle-most number, of people with disabilities across Virginia counties was 3,919.
  • For the percentage of people with disabilities:
    • For the entire state of Virginia, the overall percentage of people with disabilities is 11.9%.
      • The county with the highest percentage of people with disabilities was Dickenson (33.7%).
      • The county with the lowest percentage of people with disabilities was Arlington (6.1%).

 

  • For the number of people without disabilities:
    • The range of people without disabilities across Virginia counties, also known as the difference between the largest and smallest counts of people without disabilities across Virginia counties, was 1,048,399.
      • The county with the greatest number of people without disabilities was Fairfax (1,050,121 people).
      • The county with the least number of people without disabilities was Highland (1,722 people).
    • The average number of people without disabilities across all counties was 55,366.
    • The median, also known as the middle-most number, of people without disabilities across Virginia counties was 21,952.
  • For the percentage of people without disabilities:
    • For the entire state of Virginia, the overall percentage of people without disabilities is 88.1%.
      • The county with the highest percentage of people without disabilities was Arlington (93.9%).
      • The county with the lowest percentage of people without disabilities was Dickenson (66.3%).

 

Prevalence of People with and without Disabilities for Virginia, by County: 2021
County Total Disability No Disability   County Total Disability No Disability
Count % Count % Count % Count %
    Virginia     8,357,984 994,331 11.9 7,363,653 88.1   Chesterfield     356,953  42,146 11.8   314,807 88.2
    Accomack        32,937   4,928 15.0    28,009 85.0      Clarke         14,525   1,946 13.4    12,579 86.6
   Albemarle       110,180  10,232  9.3    99,948 90.7 Colonial Heights    17,894   2,796 15.6    15,098 84.4
   Alexandria      154,529  11,428  7.4   143,101 92.6    Covington         5,619     726 12.9     4,893 87.1
   Alleghany        15,025   2,713 18.1    12,312 81.9      Craig           4,906     732 14.9     4,174 85.1
     Amelia         13,143   2,227 16.9    10,916 83.1     Culpeper        50,653   6,380 12.6    44,273 87.4
    Amherst         31,199   4,734 15.2    26,465 84.8    Cumberland        9,669   1,334 13.8     8,335 86.2
   Appomattox       15,981   2,278 14.3    13,703 85.7     Danville        41,524   8,036 19.4    33,488 80.6
   Arlington       230,765  14,158  6.1   216,607 93.9    Dickenson        13,798   4,646 33.7     9,152 66.3
    Augusta         73,029   9,774 13.4    63,255 86.6    Dinwiddie        27,611   4,490 16.3    23,121 83.7
      Bath           4,163     577 13.9     3,586 86.1     Emporia          5,591     999 17.9     4,592 82.1
    Bedford         78,807  10,227 13.0    68,580 87.0      Essex          10,524   1,672 15.9     8,852 84.1
     Bland           5,317     987 18.6     4,330 81.4     Fairfax         23,537   1,585  6.7    21,952 93.3
   Botetourt        33,189   3,937 11.9    29,252 88.1     Fairfax      1,132,442  82,321  7.3 1,050,121 92.7
    Bristol         16,818   3,519 20.9    13,299 79.1   Falls Church      14,382     964  6.7    13,418 93.3
   Brunswick        13,787   2,500 18.1    11,287 81.9     Fauquier        72,088   7,196 10.0    64,892 90.0
    Buchanan        19,790   6,318 31.9    13,472 68.1      Floyd          15,434   1,842 11.9    13,592 88.1
   Buckingham       14,884   2,615 17.6    12,269 82.4     Fluvanna        25,803   3,258 12.6    22,545 87.4
  Buena Vista        6,575   1,152 17.5     5,423 82.5     Franklin         8,156   1,484 18.2     6,672 81.8
    Campbell        55,119   8,032 14.6    47,087 85.4     Franklin        54,508   8,066 14.8    46,442 85.2
    Caroline        28,866   3,673 12.7    25,193 87.3    Frederick        88,665  10,403 11.7    78,262 88.3
    Carroll         28,976   4,838 16.7    24,138 83.3  Fredericksburg     27,911   3,106 11.1    24,805 88.9
  Charles City       6,809   1,376 20.2     5,433 79.8      Galax           6,468     863 13.3     5,605 86.7
   Charlotte        11,472   2,522 22.0     8,950 78.0      Giles          16,659   2,191 13.2    14,468 86.8
Charlottesville     46,270   3,990  8.6    42,280 91.4    Gloucester       37,975   6,646 17.5    31,329 82.5
   Chesapeake      234,813  27,200 11.6   207,613 88.4    Goochland        23,293   2,862 12.3    20,431 87.7
Prevalence of People with and without Disabilities for Virginia, by County: 2021
County Total Disability No Disability   County Total Disability No Disability
Count % Count % Count % Count %
    Grayson         14,546   2,844 19.6    11,702 80.4   Martinsville      13,080   2,661 20.3    10,419 79.7
     Greene         20,247   2,791 13.8    17,456 86.2     Mathews          8,454   1,540 18.2     6,914 81.8
  Greensville        8,393   1,434 17.1     6,959 82.9   Mecklenburg       29,509   6,068 20.6    23,441 79.4
    Halifax         33,452   7,001 20.9    26,451 79.1    Middlesex        10,396   1,844 17.7     8,552 82.3
    Hampton        130,265  20,886 16.0   109,379 84.0    Montgomery       98,755  11,091 11.2    87,664 88.8
    Hanover        108,713  11,904 10.9    96,809 89.1      Nelson         14,764   2,019 13.7    12,745 86.3
  Harrisonburg      51,482   5,485 10.7    45,997 89.3     New Kent        21,760   2,309 10.6    19,451 89.4
    Henrico        329,336  37,627 11.4   291,709 88.6   Newport News     174,446  26,754 15.3   147,692 84.7
     Henry          50,286  10,582 21.0    39,704 79.0     Norfolk        207,124  29,981 14.5   177,143 85.5
    Highland         2,229     507 22.7     1,722 77.3   Northampton       12,017   2,366 19.7     9,651 80.3
    Hopewell        22,620   3,919 17.3    18,701 82.7  Northumberland     11,965   1,886 15.8    10,079 84.2
 Isle of Wight      37,765   5,633 14.9    32,132 85.1      Norton          3,642     906 24.9     2,736 75.1
   James City       76,164  10,266 13.5    65,898 86.5     Nottoway        13,956   2,707 19.4    11,249 80.6
  King George       26,004   2,176  8.4    23,828 91.6      Orange         35,404   5,781 16.3    29,623 83.7
  King William      17,462   2,198 12.6    15,264 87.4       Page          23,544   4,624 19.6    18,920 80.4
 King and Queen      6,690     841 12.6     5,849 87.4     Patrick         17,282   3,222 18.6    14,060 81.4
   Lancaster        10,718   1,840 17.2     8,878 82.8    Petersburg       32,306   6,903 21.4    25,403 78.6
      Lee           21,022   5,855 27.9    15,167 72.1   Pittsylvania      59,572  11,845 19.9    47,727 80.1
   Lexington         7,240     831 11.5     6,409 88.5     Poquoson        12,208   1,387 11.4    10,821 88.6
    Loudoun        411,218  25,585  6.2   385,633 93.8    Portsmouth       91,304  13,422 14.7    77,882 85.3
     Louisa         37,046   5,960 16.1    31,086 83.9     Powhatan        27,920   3,039 10.9    24,881 89.1
   Lunenburg        11,069   2,297 20.8     8,772 79.2  Prince Edward      20,550   3,323 16.2    17,227 83.8
   Lynchburg        77,407   9,802 12.7    67,605 87.3  Prince George      36,206   5,473 15.1    30,733 84.9
    Madison         13,612   1,896 13.9    11,716 86.1  Prince William    468,730  37,432  8.0   431,298 92.0
    Manassas        42,480   3,342  7.9    39,138 92.1     Pulaski         32,733   6,811 20.8    25,922 79.2
 Manassas Park      17,081   1,453  8.5    15,628 91.5     Radford         16,070   1,887 11.7    14,183 88.3
Prevalence of People with and without Disabilities for Virginia, by County: 2021
County Total Disability No Disability   County Total Disability No Disability
Count % Count % Count % Count %
  Rappahannock       7,398   1,001 13.5     6,397 86.5    Winchester       27,941   4,110 14.7    23,831 85.3
    Richmond         7,245   1,053 14.5     6,192 85.5       Wise          34,319   9,184 26.8    25,135 73.2
    Richmond       223,243  31,786 14.2   191,457 85.8      Wythe          28,207   5,474 19.4    22,733 80.6
    Roanoke         94,444  11,153 11.8    83,291 88.2       York          65,328   7,687 11.8    57,641 88.2
    Roanoke         98,346  11,397 11.6    86,949 88.4                                                       
   Rockbridge       22,405   3,903 17.4    18,502 82.6                                                       
   Rockingham       82,761   9,929 12.0    72,832 88.0                                                       
    Russell         25,698   7,411 28.8    18,287 71.2                                                       
     Salem          24,479   2,534 10.4    21,945 89.6                                                       
     Scott          20,783   5,867 28.2    14,916 71.8                                                       
   Shenandoah       43,727   7,353 16.8    36,374 83.2                                                       
     Smyth          29,427   6,660 22.6    22,767 77.4                                                       
  Southampton       16,640   3,055 18.4    13,585 81.6                                                       
  Spotsylvania     137,517  14,706 10.7   122,811 89.3                                                       
    Stafford       148,172  12,450  8.4   135,722 91.6                                                       
    Staunton        24,812   3,787 15.3    21,025 84.7                                                       
    Suffolk         90,781  11,109 12.2    79,672 87.8                                                       
     Surry           6,551   1,219 18.6     5,332 81.4                                                       
     Sussex          9,453   1,590 16.8     7,863 83.2                                                       
    Tazewell        39,384   8,017 20.4    31,367 79.6                                                       
 Virginia Beach    433,172  49,762 11.5   383,410 88.5                                                       
     Warren         40,238   5,481 13.6    34,757 86.4                                                       
   Washington       53,115  11,562 21.8    41,553 78.2                                                       
   Waynesboro       21,950   3,790 17.3    18,160 82.7                                                       
  Westmoreland      18,101   2,964 16.4    15,137 83.6                                                       
  Williamsburg      15,072   1,476  9.8    13,596 90.2                                                       
Count of People with Disabilities for Virginia, by County: 2021

Percentage of People with Disabilities for Virginia, by County: 2021

Discussion

There are a number of concepts and factors which complicate the interpretation of the estimates presented in this report. These concerns affect all statistics from population-based surveys. The estimates included in this document should be interpreted the following limitations in mind and generalized with caution. In each point, a link to the U.S. Census Bureau website describing the limitation or concept in greater detail in the ACS has been provided.

Additional links to resources for the ACS:

Glossary

American Community Survey (ACS) — The American Community Survey is a large, continuous demographic survey conducted by the U.S. Census Bureau that will provide accurate and up-to-date profiles of America’s communities every year. Annual and multiyear estimates of population and housing data are generated for small areas, including tracts and population subgroups. This information is collected by mailing questionnaires to a sample of addresses. See the U.S. Census Bureau website for additional details.

The Six Disability Questions in the American Community Survey:

  1. Is this person deaf or does he/she have serious difficulty hearing? (yes or no)
  2. Is this person blind or does he/she have serious difficulty seeing even when wearing glasses? (yes or no)
  3. (If person 5 years old or over) Because of a physical, mental, or emotional condition, does this person have serious difficulty concentrating, remembering, or making decisions? (yes or no)
  4. (If person 5 years or old over) Does this person have serious difficulty walking or climbing stairs? (yes or no)
  5. (If person 5 years old or over) Does this person have difficulty dressing or bathing? (yes or no)
  6. (If person 15 years old or over) Because of a physical, mental, or emotional condition, does this person have difficulty doing errands alone such as visiting a doctor’s office or shopping? (yes or no)

Average — The sum of all of the values in a sample divided by the number of values in the sample.

Civilian — A person not in active-duty military.

Median — The middlemost value of a sample that separates the upper half of the values from the lower half of the values. 

Non-Institutionalized Population — Describes individuals who are residing in the community and who are not living in institutions such as jails, prisons, nursing homes, hospitals, etc.

Population — The total number of inhabitants in a defined geographic area including all races, classes, and groups.

Prevalence — The proportion of the population with a particular status or condition. Prevalence is usually expressed as a percentage or a number of people per unit of the population.

Prevalence Rate — The prevalence of a particular status or condition estimated over a specific period of time.

Range — The difference between the largest and smallest values in a sample. In a sample, when the smallest value is subtracted from the largest value the resulting value is called the range. 

Sampling Variability — The variation of a statistic when estimated from repeated samples.

United States Census Bureau — An agency within the United States Federal Statistical System tasked with producing data about the American people and economy. Their primary task is to conduct the United States Census every ten years.

About the Center

Rehabilitation Research and Training Center on Disability Statistics and Demographics (StatsRRTC)

Led by the University of New Hampshire, the StatsRRTC is a collaborative effort involving the following partners: American Association of People with Disabilities, Center for Essential Management Services, Council of State Administrators of Vocational Rehabilitation, Kessler Foundation, Mathematica Policy Research, and Public Health Institute.

The StatsRRTC is funded by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Administration for Community Living, National Institute on Disability, Independent Living and Rehabilitation Research under grant number 90RTGE0001, from 2018–2023.

Contact Information
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Durham, NH 03824
Toll-Free Telephone/TTY: 866-538-9521
E-mail: Disability.Statistics@unh.edu
https://www.researchondisability.org