Government and public statistics
Americans with Disabilities: 2010 (P70-131)
U.S. Census Bureau, U.S. Census Bureau, 2012
Read the originalRead on October 19, 2026
- What it is
- The U.S. Census Bureau's report on disability in the 2010 Survey of Income and Program Participation (SIPP), issued July 2012. It gives the share of people 15 and older, and of people 65 and older, with difficulty lifting, grasping and other physical tasks.
- How much weight it carries
- Official federal statistics from a large national household survey with published standard errors. Difficulty is self-reported, and the report predates the 2021 SIPP questions on lifting and grasping, so the figures describe 2010 only.
Facts taken from this source
- In the 2010 Survey of Income and Program Participation, 2.8 percent of US people aged 15 and older, about 6.7 million people, reported difficulty grasping objects like a glass or pencil.
“2.8 percent (6.7 million people) reported difficulty grasping objects like a glass or pencil” (Selected physical tasks, text)
- In the 2010 Survey of Income and Program Participation, 7.1 percent of US people aged 15 and older, about 17.2 million people, reported difficulty lifting a 10-pound object like a bag of groceries.
“7.1 per- cent (17.2 million people) reported difficulty lifting a 10-pound object like a bag of groceries” (Selected physical tasks, text)
- In the 2010 Survey of Income and Program Participation, 8.2 percent of US people aged 15 and older, about 19.9 million people, had difficulty with physical tasks for the upper body, including lifting and grasping.
“Approximately 19.9 million people 15 years and older (8.2 percent) had difficulty with physical tasks relating to upper body function- ing, including difficulty lifting and grasping” (Selected physical tasks, text)
- In the 2010 Survey of Income and Program Participation, 23.8 percent of the US population aged 65 and older reported difficulty with lifting or grasping.
“About 23.8 percent of the population aged 65 and older reported difficulty with lifting or grasping.” (Selected physical tasks, text)