Puerto Rico
Results are from an analysis of the 2010 Census of Population. Information on methodology is in the report and in the method briefs.
Prevalence of Functional Difficulties
In Puerto Rico, the share of adults aged 15 and older with any functional difficulty stands at 22%. The prevalence of functional difficulties is higher for women (22.4%) than for men (21.6%). Functional difficulties are more prevalent among older age groups, at 6.9% for ages 15 to 29, 11.6% for ages 30 to 44, 26.5% for ages 45 to 64, and 50.1% for ages 65 and over. Across the five functional domains considered, difficulties with mobility (13%) and cognition (9.8%) are most common. At the household level, the prevalence of any functional difficulty is at 36.7%.
Table 1: Puerto Rico: Prevalence of functional difficulties (%)
| Group | Any difficulty |
|---|---|
| All adults | 22.01 |
| Females | 22.41 |
| Males | 21.56 |
| Rural residents | – |
| Urban residents | – |
| Ages 15 to 29 | 6.90 |
| Ages 30 to 44 | 11.58 |
| Ages 45 to 64 | 26.54 |
| Ages 65 and over | 50.08 |
| Seeing | 7.10 |
| Hearing | 4.56 |
| Mobility | 13.04 |
| Cognitive | 9.75 |
| Self-care | 4.52 |
| Communication | – |
| All households | 36.66 |
| Rural households | – |
| Urban households | – |
Source: Puerto Rico 2010 Census of Population, own calculations
Key indicators on the deprivations and wellbeing experienced by persons with and without functional difficulties are presented in Table 2. Table 2 begins with information on the multidimensional poverty headcount—the rate of persons deprived in more than one dimension in the areas of education, work, health, and standard of living. Persons with any functional difficulty have a multidimensional poverty rate of 21% compared to 4% for persons with no difficulty.
Table 2: Puerto Rico: Key indicators for adults age 15+ by functional difficulty status (% and percentage points)
| Indicator | No Difficulty | Any difficulty | Difference | Stat. Significance |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Multidimensional poverty headcount | 4 | 21 | -17 | *** |
| Less than primary school | 5 | 23 | -17 | *** |
| Employment population ratio | 45 | 14 | 31 | *** |
| Safely managed drinking water | – | – | – | – |
| Safely managed sanitation | – | – | – | – |
| Clean fuel | – | – | – | – |
| Electricity | – | – | – | – |
| Adequate housing | – | – | – | – |
| Owns assets | 94 | 87 | 6 | *** |
Source: Puerto Rico 2010 Census of Population, own calculations
Education
The share of adults who have less than primary school as their highest level of schooling attained is higher among persons with any functional difficulty (23%) compared to persons with no difficulty (5%), which boils down to a gap of 17 percentage points (p.p.).
Work
Persons with no functional difficulty have a higher employment population ratio (or share of the population working) than persons with any functional difficulty, at 45% and 14%, respectively.
Standard of Living
There is a significant difference in terms of the share of individuals who own assets, with lower rates for persons with any functional difficulty compared to persons with no difficulty, at 87% and 94%, respectively.
More results for Puerto Rico are available in results tables on the ddi website.