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UN Secretary General: People with disabilities hit hard by pandemic

By Jasminko Bijelić  Published On 07/05/2020

UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said on Wednesday that the one billion people with disabilities worldwide are among the hardest hit by the coronavirus pandemic in terms of mortality.

"The proportion of covid-19-related deaths in nursing homes - dominated by elderly people with disabilities - ranges from 19% to a staggering 72%," he said in the video.

Guterres stressed that people with disabilities face a lack of accessible health information, obstacles to implementing basic hygiene measures, and inaccessible health facilities. If they contract the disease caused by the new coronavirus, "many are likely to develop severe health symptoms, which may result in death," he said.
In the report, he recommended a response that would include people with disabilities and their recovery in crisis.
"Even under normal circumstances, people with disabilities are likely to be less likely to gain access to education, health care, and opportunities for income or community participation," he said.
"The pandemic has intensified these inequalities and created new threats," he pointed out. 
Guterres also recently warned of the impact of the crisis on older people and children, who are at greater risk of death, abuse and hunger due to the pandemic.