An Estimate of Life Expectancy of Persons with Disability in Italy

Background: Estimates of survival for people with disabilities are rare and tend to focus on individuals with specific diseases. The health conditions of people with disabilities are often very poor, which is reflected in their significantly lower life expectancy com-pared to the rest of the population. Objectives This study aims to estimate the life ex-pectancy of people with severe disabilities in Italy. Methods: Data from the 1999–2000 Health Interview Survey, linked to the register of causes of death up to 2012, were uti-lized for the purpose of this study. Survival was analyzed using a Weibull regression model. Hazard ratios for subjects with and without disabilities were employed to es-timate the mortality risk among subjects with disabilities compared to all subjects sur-veyed. These ratios were then employed to construct a life table for people with disa-bilities by multiplying the death probabilities of the general population by the ratio. Results: The life expectancy at 15 years for people with disabilities was found to be 59.1 years for males and 66.2 years for females. The LE gap between people with disabilities and the general population at 15 years was 6.6 years for men and 4.1 years for women. Conclusions: These findings provide valid and robust information on the life expectancy gap between people with and without disabilities and can be used as a reference point when evaluating policies aimed at people with disabilities.