University of Kansas Institute for Health and Disability Policy Studies

04/09/2026

This research from Aspen Lillywhite and Gregor Wolbring is interesting. They looked at whether students with disabilities are being engaged to become researchers - including in disability fields.

All forms of research can impact people in the disability community, and disabled researchers need to be part of that work.



(Link below will open a PDF - Undergraduate Disabled Students as Knowledge Producers Including Researchers: Perspectives of Disabled Students)

04/02/2026

Idaho is positioning to slash Medicaid funding as state lawmakers grapple with the effects of the federal One Big Beautiful Bill Act, which President Donald Trump signed into law last year. On the table are in-home care services.

03/31/2026

Kansas families are facing a crisis. United Methodist Health Ministry Fund projects the state could lose $3.9B in federal funding over the next decade — and for Kansans with intellectual or developmental disabilities, that means their home and community-based services are at risk.

KUCD - Kansas University Center on Disabilities has tracked funding for 43 years. Follow the link in our comments to find out what has researchers worried.

03/26/2026

Read all about it! AAHD congratulates the National Institutes of Health (NIH) on the release of their inaugural NIH Strategic Plan for Disability Health Research (FY26 – FY30). Read more here: https://aahd.us/2026/03/aahd-celebrates-the-launch-of-nihs-strategic-plan-for-disability-health-research/

03/25/2026

Celebrating Jean Hall! 🥳

As we wrap up Women's History Month, we would like to highlight a woman who stood up for the disability community. Jean is a Research Professor Emerita and former Director of the Institute for Health and Disability Policy Studies at the University of Kansas. 💐

After facing various roadblocks while trying access health insurance, she took matters into her own hands and brought light to an issue that was facing millions of Americans. The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) conducted a demonstration using her findings which were proven correct! ✍

Her efforts do not just stop there she has also researched numerous aspects that includes private, state, and federal projects related to education, employment, and health care for people with disabilities in the educational, welfare to work, One-Stop, TW-WIIA, Medicaid, and Medicare systems! 🌐

03/19/2026

The 2024 5-year American Community Survey (ACS) and Puerto Rico Community Survey (PRCS) data are now available on IPUMS USA.

IPUMS USA collects, preserves and harmonizes U.S. census microdata and provides easy access to this data with enhanced documentation. Data includes decennial censuses from 1790 to 2010 and American Community Surveys (ACS) from 2000 to the present.

03/17/2026

When we conduct the National Survey on Health and Disability, we ask people if they use personal assistance services and if they have additional care needs.

This article from Disability Belongs explains how many people with disabilities rely on personal assistance and other forms of support to remain independent in their communities.

Caregiving is not a side issue. It is central to how disabled people live, work, and remain in their communities.

03/12/2026

There was a time when many people with developmental disabilities were hidden, segregated, or excluded from community life.

History matters.

Not for nostalgia — for understanding.

03/12/2026

In the College of Engineering, Dianne Pawluk is working to make visual diagrams more accessible and computer programming more inclusive.

03/10/2026

Article on the joint American Association of People with Disabilities and Disability Rights Education and Defense Fund (DREDF) report on the increased challenges people with disabilities have in qualifying for or maintaining Social Security benefits under new policies, which include experts being shifted into phone-answering positions.

A new report featuring faculty at Binghamton University reveals that 2025 changes to the federal benefits system have made it significantly harder for Americans to access disability benefits.