Impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic
Health impacts, vaccinations and precautions
Existing population-wide administrative data sources about COVID-19 infections, vaccinations and deaths do not include information about disability status, limiting the information currently available about the direct impacts of the virus on people with disability in Australia. However, for people with disability who are NDIS participants, data show that, as of May 2022:
- a total of 12,721 COVID-19 cases had been reported among NDIS participants
- there were 74 COVID-19 related deaths (0.6% of NDIS participant cases).
Self-assessed health has varied throughout the COVID-19 pandemic for people with and without disability. In May 2021, most people, regardless of their disability status, said their physical and mental health was about the same as it was before COVID-19 (or in March 2020). At the same time, people with disability were more likely than those without disability to say their physical health got worse or much worse.
|
Self-assessed health, compared with before COVID-19 (March 2020) |
Adults(a) with disability |
Adults(a) without disability |
|---|---|---|
|
Physical health |
|
|
|
Better or much better |
12% |
15% |
|
About the same |
64% |
69% |
|
Worse or much worse |
24% |
16% |
|
Mental health |
|
|
|
Better or much better |
8.6% |
15% |
|
About the same |
68% |
67% |
|
Worse or much worse |
23% |
17% |
(a) People aged 18 and over living in households.
Adults with disability were more likely than those without disability to use telehealth services (such as appointments with a health professional over the phone or by video conferencing) during the pandemic:
- in November 2020, 30% of adults with disability reported having had a telehealth consultation in the previous 4 weeks (14% without disability)
- in April 2021, 21% of adults with disability reported having had a telehealth consultation in the previous 4 weeks (12% without disability).
Analysis of June 2021 survey data on COVID-19 vaccinations shows that nearly half (46%) of adults with disability had received at least one dose of a COVID-19 vaccine by June 2021 (28% of adults without disability).
|
COVID-19 vaccination status and intentions |
Adults(a) with disability | Adults(a) without disability |
|---|---|---|
|
Received at least one dose of COVID-19 vaccine |
46% |
28% |
|
Would get a COVID-19 vaccine once it was available to them(b) |
73% |
74% |
|
Would not get a COVID-19 vaccine once it was available to them |
13% |
11% |
|
Not sure if would get a COVID-19 vaccine |
13% |
15% |
(a) People aged 18 and over living in households.
(b) Includes people who already received at least one dose of COVID-19 vaccine.
Of those who received at least one vaccine dose:
- 38% of adults with disability were motivated to get it because it was recommended by a health professional (28% of those without disability)
- 28% of those with disability were motivated to get a vaccine because they had health conditions which made them more vulnerable (13% for those without disability).
The most common reason for not wanting to get vaccinated was concerns relating to potential side effects (53% for those with disability and 52% for those without disability).
Regular use of public transport declined during the pandemic. People with disability were less likely to regularly use public transport than people without disability before COVID-19. Regular public transport use during the pandemic declined more for people without disability than for people with disability.
| Proportion used public transport one or more times per week in the last 4 weeks | Adults(a) with disability | Adults(a) without disability |
|---|---|---|
|
March 2020 |
12% |
27% |
|
December 2020 |
9.8% |
12% |
|
March 2021 |
9.9% |
16% |
|
June 2021 |
7.9% |
14% |
(a) People aged 18 and over living in households.
Social and economic participation
Adults with disability were less likely than those without disability to participate in a range of social activities during the COVID-19 pandemic, including attendance at social gatherings, regularly visiting a public park or recreation area, or exercising.
Four in 10 (41%) adults with disability chose not to attend any social gatherings during December 2020 (34% without disability).
| Proportion of participation in social activities | Adults(a) with disability | Adults(a) without disability< |
|---|---|---|
|
…at least once in the last 4 weeks: |
|
|
|
Attended social gatherings of more than 10 people |
44% |
53% |
|
Visited bars or restaurants in person |
61% |
77% |
|
Attended a cultural event or venue |
12% |
18% |
|
…at least once a week, in the last 4 weeks: |
|
|
|
Visited a public park or recreation area |
29% |
44% |
|
Exercised at a gym or played sport |
17% |
28% |
|
Shopped in physical stores |
73% |
78% |
(a) People aged 18 and over living in households.
During 2020, 9.0% of adults (aged 18 and over) with disability and 13% of those without disability undertook study for a qualification. This was broadly consistent with the 2018 rates, when 9.1% of people aged 15–64 with disability were studying for a non-school qualification.
Of those undertaking study or training in 2020, adults with disability were more likely to have done all of their study online (73%) compared with adults without disability (59%).
Of the NDIS participants who had been in the scheme for at least 2 years, 22% of those aged 15 or over were employed at 30 June 2021, the same as at scheme entry (before 30 June 2019).
Income and finances
Adults with disability were more likely to experience financial stress during the COVID-19 pandemic than those without disability, including adverse effects on household income, finances, and savings.
Almost 3 in 10 (28%) adults with disability reported that their household finances had worsened over the previous 12 months, compared with 18% of those without disability (in February 2021). Eight in 10 people (regardless of disability status) whose financial situation declined, attributed the decline at least in part to COVID-19.
Analysis of January 2021 data on other indicators of financial stress shows that people with disability were more likely to report worse financial outcomes than people without disability.
| Selected characteristics(a) | Adults(a) with disability | Adults(a) without disability |
|---|---|---|
|
Household unable to pay one or more selected bills(b) on time in the last 3 months due to a shortage of money |
14% |
5.5% |
|
Drawn on accumulated savings or term deposits in the last 4 weeks to support basic living expenses |
13% |
6.9% |
|
Borrowed from family and friends in the last 4 weeks to support basic living expenses |
5.5% |
0.9% |
|
Expect to be able to pay all bills received in the next 3 months |
85% |
93% |
|
Able to raise $2,000 for something important within a week |
74% |
82% |
(a) People aged 18 and over living in households.
(b) Includes electricity, gas or telephone bills, mortgage or rent payments, car registration or insurance, and home and/or contents insurance.
Life after COVID-19 restrictions
In June 2021:
- 1 in 5 (20%) adults with disability expected life would return to normal within a year (27% without disability)
- 1 in 5 (20%) adults with disability thought life would never return to normal (14% without disability)
There were certain aspects of life under COVID-19 restrictions people wanted to continue in the future (June 2021):
- 1 in 4 (27%) adults with disability wanted to continue spending more time with family and friends (34% without disability)
- 1 in 4 (23%) enjoyed the slower pace of life (28% without disability)
- 1 in 5 (22%) adults with disability named spending less or saving more as the aspect of life they wanted to continue (31% of adults without disability)
- 1 in 5 (19%) wanted to continue working from home (37% without disability)
- 1 in 4 (24%) people with disability wanted none of the aspects of life under COVID-19 restrictions to continue (15% without disability).
For more information and lists of data sources, see the full web report.