Deputy Prime Minister Tatyana Golikova announced that the number of people with disabilities in Russia has decreased by 6% since 2018. Currently, this figure stands at 11.4 million, including 784,000 children. The Deputy Prime Minister did not specify the reasons for this reduction.
Ms. Golikova presented these figures at a meeting of the Presidential Commission for Disability Affairs. A press release, summarizing the outcomes of the session, was obtained by TASS news agency.
The release notably stated that approximately 90% of adult individuals with disabilities have been granted permanent disability status. Furthermore, nearly 4.5 million people with disabilities, representing 39% of the total, are of working age. The report indicated that their primary employment sectors are education, healthcare, and manufacturing.
On July 14, Oleg Smolin, a member of the Commission for Disability Affairs and a representative of the Communist Party, highlighted the ongoing decline in the number of disabled people in Russia. He pointed out that five years ago, Russia`s disabled population was 13.2 million. The MP speculated that this decrease might be due to many individuals now facing significant difficulties in obtaining official recognition of their disability.
