Exposure to COVID-19 Infection and Mortality Rates Among People With Disabilities in South Korea

Abstract

Background: With the delayed eradication of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), people with disabilities, a socially vulnerable class of individuals, face aggravated hardships caused by a pause in support services and lack of care due to stricter social distancing policies combined with the challenges of their disabilities. Given this background, we aim to investigate COVID-19 infection rates and mortality among people with disabilities, who face heightened physical and mental health threats amidst the COVID-19 pandemic. Methods: Gender, age, health insurance premiums, the Charlson Comorbidity Index, the severity of the disability, and the type of disability were compared among people with disabilities who had been infected with or died from COVID-19 using the nationally representative National Health Insurance Service (NHIS)-COVID database (DB). Results: We found that the COVID-19 infection rate was higher among those with low income, those with severe disability, and those with "other" disabilities (i.e., speech disabilities, hepatic dysfunction, respiratory dysfunction, facial disfigurement, intestinal fistular/urinary disability, epilepsy, intellectual disability, autistic disorder, and mental disorders). The mortality rate was markedly higher (i.e., 15.90 times higher, odds ratio [OR]: 15.90, 95% confidence interval [CI]: 6.16 - 41.06) among people aged 80 years or older as compared with those aged 60 years or younger. The odds for mortality were 2.49 times higher (OR: 2.49, 95% CI: 1.33 - 4.64) among people with severe disabilities as compared with mild disabilities. Conclusions: Among people with disabilities, we found that COVID-19 infection rates differed according to income level, severity of the disability, and disability type, while the COVID-19 mortality rate differed according to age and severity of the disability.

Comparative analysis of genetic testing utilization rates among people with and without disabilities in South Korea from 2016 to 2019, focusing on malignant neoplasms: A national population‐based study

“…The cancer mortality and prevalence rates among people with disabilities are 1.05 and 5.02 times higher, respectively, than those among people without disabilities, despite the incidence rate of people with disabilities being marginally lower, at 0.90 times that of people without disabilities. 9 , 10 Similarly, people with severe disabilities (Grades 1–3) show higher mortality rates than those with mild disabilities (Grades 4–6), despite the incidence rate being marginally lower.…”

Living through the Pandemic with a Disability: A Longitudinal Qualitative Study

“…Because the COVID-19 pandemic was a new experience that no one in the world has ever experienced, our study aims to elucidate the specific, unique challenges that people with disabilities faced in this time period. So far, preliminary data suggests that during the COVID-19 pandemic, people with disabilities were at higher risk of infection and death than people without disabilities [7,8]. In addition, people with disabilities were less likely to access necessary medical support, such as getting appointments for general checkups, because healthcare systems prioritized their resources for patients with COVID-19 [9].…”