RISP Data Bytes

Plain Language Summary

Sixty-three percent of the 1.4 million people with intellectual or developmental disabilities (IDD) who get long-term supports and services (LTSS) live with family members. Ten percent live in their own homes. Five percent lived with host or foster families. Twenty percent lived in group IDD settings, and two percent lived in a nursing home or psychiatric facility.

Background

About twenty-three percent of children with intellectual disability or autism spectrum disorder got LTSS. Forty-four percent of adults with IDD got LTSS. They lived in these settings:

Family home: A home shared by a person with IDD and their related family members.
Own home: A home owned or rented by a person with IDD.
Host/foster family home: A home owned or rented by an individual or family who provides supportive services to one or more people with IDD.
Group home: A residence owned or managed by an organization or agency that provides services to the people with IDD in the home. This includes group homes of all sizes. It also includes Medicaid Intermediate Care Facilities for Individuals with Intellectual Disabilities (ICF/IID).
Nursing homes: A facility owned or managed by a service provider that provides medical care and LTSS to people of all ages with disabilities.
Psychiatric facilities: A facility owned or managed by an organization that provides psychiatric care and LTSS. The number of people with IDD in psychiatric facilities is an underestimate because many states do not report this information.

Bar chart showing where 1.4 million LTSS recipients with IDD lived on June 30, 2022. Sixty-three percent lived in family homes. Ten percent lived in their own homes. Five percent lived in host/foster family homes. Fifteen percent lived in group settings of one to six people. Three percent lived in group settings of seven to fifteen people. Two percent lived in group settings of sixteen or more people, and two percent lived in nursing homes or psychiatric facilities. — **Estimated Number of People with IDD in Different Residence Types and Sizes in 2022**

Key Finding

On June 30, 2022, an estimated 1,427,068 people with IDD were getting LTSS. Of those, 892,393 lived with family members. Nearly all children and just under half of adults with IDD getting LTSS lived with a family member. 141,279 people with IDD lived in their own homes. 64,500 lived with host or foster families. Only 301,155 people lived in group IDD settings. Of those, 34,609 lived in settings of sixteen or more people. 49,311 lived in settings of 7 to 15 people. 126,818 live in group homes of 4 to 6 people and 90,417 live in homes with 1 to 3 people. At least 27,741 people with IDD lived in nursing homes or psychiatric facilities.

Recommendations

Most families provide housing and supports to their loved ones with IDD. Most are unpaid. Family caregivers are often unable to work while they care for their loved one. When an adult with IDD is eligible to get government-funded supports, family members should be able to be paid as a provider. Adults with IDD should be able to choose where they will live and who their roommates will be. They should not have to live with strangers or in an institution to get needed supports.

Data Source

Larson, S. A., Neidorf, J., Hall, S., Pettingell, S., & Vegas, L. (Forthcoming). Long-term supports and services for persons with intellectual or developmental disabilities: Status and trends through 2022. University of Minnesota, Institute on Community Integration, Research and Training Center on Community Living.

Authors

Sheryl A. Larson, Jon Neidorf, and Sarah A. Hall.

The RISP project gets funds from the Administration on Community Living, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Cooperative Agreement #90DNPA0006 with supplemental funding from the National Institutes on Disability, Independent Living and Rehabilitation Research Grant #90RTCP0011.

Updated 8/4/26