Poverty and people with a disability

In Australia, there is limited discussion on the poverty/disability link in social policy research. Scant attention is given to the fact that people with a disability are over-represented among those living in poverty: they are the hidden poor, marginalised and often with worse health than non-disabled citizens (Gleeson 1998; ACOSS 2014a; Australian Institute of Health and Welfare (AIHW) 2016b). Consequently, not enough attention is paid to primary mechanisms for alleviating disability poverty, that is, the income replacement systems and the unique additional cash transfers and supports this provides, such as the education supplements and mobility allowance. Instead, broader socioeconomic problems that confront the majority of people with a disability" things like access to education and employment" are left to smaller advocacy groups and initiatives.