UNC study: 'chilling' hardship rates among families raising disable...(In 2002 the federal poverty level for a ...),Health

According to the study, 40 percent of the surveyed families with disabled children who earned between two to three times the federal poverty level (between $36,200 and $54,300 for a family of four, for example) experienced at least one food hardship, including worrying that food would run out or skipping meals because of a lack of money. Fifteen percent of families with incomes at three or more times the federal poverty level ($54,300 and up for a family of four) experienced housing instability, meaning they were unable to pay their rent or had to move in with others.

"These results suggest that state and federal policies that are in place to help families with disabled children are not going nearly far enough," Parish said. "They are not eliminating deprivation. And these findings are particularly troubling now when the nation's economy is struggling. Families raising children with disabilities are likely to be hardest hit during this economic downturn."

Though the study found that children with disabilities were more likely to have health insurance and a usual source of care, they were 61 percent more likely than non-disabled children to have postponed necessary medical care and 83 percent more likely to have postponed needed dental care. The study didn't examine the causes for those results, but Parish said they likely are related to the expenses of obtaining care even with health insurance and other issues, such as limited transportation.

The research results offer a compelling reason to expand eligibility standards for federal programs designed to assist families with disabled children, Parish said. Though more study is needed to determine how best to assist these families, UNC researchers suggest that increasing the income limits for food stamps, housing assistance and federal Supplemental Security Income, which assists low-income people with disabiliti
'/>"/>