This past September, I attended a conference that was sponsored by the Brian Injury Association of MI (BIAMI). One of the speakers was Susan H. Connors, the President and CEO of the Brain Injury Association of America.
The major theme of Ms. Connor’s speech was funding, specifically, the US allocation of Federal dollars per person per year. Ms. Connor further broke the figures down by the disability poputlation. They are as follows:
- HIV/AIDS population–$18,111.00
- Mental Retardation/Developmental Disability population–$4635.00
- Breast Cancer–$295.00
- Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI) –$2.55
Also, the cost to society has been broken down as follows:
- 25 billion per year in 1989.
- 48 billion per year in 1995.
- $53.6 billion per year in 2005.
More below.
Another statistic cited by Ms. O’Connor:
- The incidence of traumatic brain injury in soldiers returning from Iraq is as high as 50%.
- In all previous wars, apporoximately 20% of all military casualties sustained a brain injury.
Figures cite an approximate of 7000 people who will need information, rehabilitation, transportation, housing, vocational rehabilitation and other health care/social programs. Also, TBI accounts for approximately 10% of the disability population, and only 2% of the public vocational rehabilitation caseload.
Another statistic cited by Ms. O’Connor: There are at leat 5.3 million Americans living with a disability as a result of a traumatic brain injury. Two percent of the US population is a voting block worth noticing
Combine w/all other disability groups and you have one hell of a voting block!
Clarification: Am in no way suggesting that funding for any disability populations should be decreased!
What I am saying is that public funding for all disability populations should be increased!
Thanks for this, kid. You’re not the only brain-injured tribber. I’d just like to remind everybody that soldiers aren’t the only ones at risk.
As long as we’re driving cars without side airbags, running stop lights and signs – there’s gonna be a lot more of us.
You’re welcome. Also, I was never in the service. I used to manage a lawn and garden center and three post hole diggers fell off a shelf when I was pricing merchandise and knocked me in the back of the head.
I was one of those people who really enjoyed working retail and did not mind getting my hands dirty. Unusual characteristics, especially when you include the fact that I am female. (There is a story behind the Street Kid name–maybe sometime I’ll tell it!)
I’ll be watching for your story. I think there’s quite a number of tribbers who are disabled – we could be the majority in our little band.
That might be an interesting poll for Booman to put up.
A lot of the general public also seem to think that all disabled people are in wheelchairs(per the pix on the handicapped parking spaces-which irritates the crap out of me) and are old people.
The fact of the matter is that there are many who do not appear to have a disability. However, that is not the case. At the BIA meeting, there is one way to visually differentiate the some of the survivors from the general population–some have a trach (tracheotomy) scar. (I don’t.)
And I get that kind of crap all of the time–“You are not really disabled, you look fine…” blah, blah, blah… But the fact is that a traumatic brain injury can change a person’s life in so many ways, that it is impossible to list them all here.
Definitely would be the majority–especially after all of the family members, friends, providers, and so on are also counted.