A new study from the Rick Hansen Foundation and the Angus Reid Institute suggests more than two-thirds of Canadians fear someone in their lives will face mobility, hearing or vision disabilities in the next 10 years.
Roughly the same two-thirds concerned about a family member or a friend are also worried they too may face similar challenges.
Overall, almost one quarter of Canadians say they have a disability or face mobility, hearing, and vision challenges.
According to the study, 28 per cent of adults aged 35-54 expect to deal with a disability in the next five to 10 years – that number rises to 32 per cent for adults over age 55.
Canadians are also concerned about accessibility to buildings, the study indicates.
Seventy per cent of respondents said they believe any new building that can be made accessible for all should, and one in five Canadians would support a business more knowing it was certified as accessible.
The study also looked at the economic backgrounds of the respondents, and found nearly half of all people who say they’re directly affected by a disability come from households with combined incomes of less than $50,000 annually.
But for those directly affected and earning $100,000 or over, the number plummets to only 14 per cent.
The poll data comes from an online survey that ran from Nov. 14 to Nov. 20 2018, from 1,800 randomized members of an Angus Reid study group.
