Disabled among hardest hit by coronavirus: UN chief

UNITED NATIONS, May 06 (APP):United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said Wednesday that the world’s one billion people with disabilities are among the hardest hit by the coronavirus pandemic in terms of fatalities.
“The share of COVID-19-related deaths in care homes – where older people with disabilities are overrepresented – ranges from 19 per cent to an astonishing 72 per cent,” he said in launching a report issued that calls for a disability-inclusive recovery and response to the crisis.
Guterres highlighted that persons with disabilities face a lack of accessible public health information, barriers to implement basic hygiene measures and inaccessible health facilities.
If they contract the disease caused by the novel coronavirus, “many are more likely to develop severe health conditions, which may result in death,” the UN chief said.
“Even under normal circumstances, persons with disabilities are less likely to access education, health care and income opportunities or participate in the community,” he said. “The pandemic is intensifying these inequalities and producing new threats.”
Guterres also recently highlighted the impact of the crisis on older people and children, who he said are at a higher risk of death, abuse and malnutrition during the pandemic.
“The pandemic is intensifying these inequalities — and producing new threats,” he said.
Additionally, in some countries, healthcare rationing decisions are based on discriminatory criteria, such as age or assumptions about quality or value of life, based on disability: something which must not be allowed to continue.
“We must guarantee the equal rights of people with disabilities to access healthcare and lifesaving procedures during the pandemic”, he said.
The COVID-19 pandemic is hitting people with disabilities in other ways.
Guterres said those who faced employment exclusion before the crisis are now more likely to lose their jobs. They also will experience greater difficulties in returning to work.
Yet, less than 30 per cent of people with significant disabilities have access to benefits. In low-income countries, the number is only one per cent.
Meanwhile, people with disabilities – particularly, women and girls – face a greater risk of domestic violence, which has surged during the pandemic.
The UN chief urged governments to place people with disabilities at the centre of COVID-19 response and recovery efforts, and to consult and engage with them.
This sector of the population also has valuable experience to offer regarding thriving in situations of isolation and alternate working arrangements.
“When we secure the rights of people with disabilities, we are investing in our common future”, the UN chief said.
Guterres underlined the importance of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) in creating more inclusive and accessible societies.
The Secretary-General added that the UN is doing its part through the United Nations Disability Inclusion Strategy which he launched last year.
Through the Strategy, the UN system will mainstream disability inclusion across its work, with the aim of achieving transformative and lasting change.