Research Brief: Work-Related Disability, Veteran Status, and Poverty: Implications for Family Well-Being

This study examines the interrelationships between work-related disability, veteran, and poverty statuses.The research found that households with non-disabled veterans present have a lower likelihood of poverty, but that advantage is severely eroded when the veteran or another family member has a work-limiting disability. Veterans should actively seek access to and use benefits for which they are eligible, and the income supports provided by the Veteran’s Administration to those who served in the armed forces might reduce the risk of poverty. Researchers should examine the extent to which differences in use of service-connected benefits explains some of the variation in poverty among veteran households