Evaluation of New Content on the 2008 American Community Survey: Service-Connected Disability Status and Ratings

• Activity Number: 453
• Type: Topic Contributed
• Date/Time: Wednesday, August 4, 2010 : 8:30 AM to 10:20 AM
• Sponsor: Social Statistics Section
• Author(s): Kelly Ann Holder*+
• Companies: U.S. Census Bureau
• Keywords: American Community Survey ; veterans

Abstract

In 2008, two new questions about service-connected disability status and ratings were added to the American Community Survey (ACS). These questions are asked of all people who indicate they had previously served on active duty in the U.S. Armed Forces, Reserves, or National Guard, had trained with the Reserves or National Guard, or were currently on active duty. The purpose for adding this new content was to enable the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) to classify veterans by disability-rating level. The VA needs information on this topic at this level of detail, cross-classified by demographic information such as income, to guide them in estimating the demand for their health care services. This report compares the first year of ACS data on this topic with administrative data from the 2008 Annual Report on Compensation and Pension from the Veterans Benefits Administration.