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The American Association of People With Disabilities advocates for civil rights in every aspect of life regarding those who are disabled.

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Join AAPD and give everyone equal rights

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Join AAPD and give everyone equal rights

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Let your heart touch other people's hearts.

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Let your heart touch other people's hearts.

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Many people with disabilities are completely able to live independently, but obtaining the provisions to do so can be challenging if not impossible for them.

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Wheelchair Accessible Vehicles

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Being inclusive to others can bring together a stronger community

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Being inclusive to others can bring together a stronger community

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People with disabilities are just as talented as other people around you

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People with disabilities are just as talented as other people around you

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Disability Wales and Disability Rights UK addressed the Covid-19 Inquiry in Cardiff on Tuesday, February 27, about the "mass death and real suffering" experienced by disabled people in Wales during the pandemic.

They said that despite the Welsh Government's awareness of the risks, it failed to properly plan for the crisis resulting in a "lack of access to food and essential resources, collapse of health, care and independent living services, and the suspension of disabled people's rights".

The organisations said 68 per cent of those who died of Covid-19 in Wales were disabled - the UK-wide rate was 59 per cent.

They also cited government statistics which showed that people with learning disabilities were between three and eight times more likely to die of Covid in Wales than non-disabled people.

When questioned by a barrister over the data and whether she felt the government had seen these deaths as inevitable, Professor Debbie Foster, co-chairperson of the Welsh Government's Disability Taskforce, said there was a "feeling of inevitability" from Westminster.

She said this was about the likelihood of the more vulnerable dying, and that "among the group", disabled people were seen during the pandemic as "dispensable".

Covid Inquiry barrister raises the "alarming" data showing that between March - July 2020, 68% of deaths in Wales were of Disabled people.

She asks Prof Debbie Foster whether there was a feeling that the Welsh Government had seen these deaths as inevitable.

Here is her reply. pic.twitter.com/taS2R9jGIe
- Disability Wales (@DisabilityWales) February 29, 2024

Chief Executive of Disability Wales, Rhian Davies said: "The Covid-19 Inquiry public hearings in Wales are enabling us to highlight the stark reality of life for disabled people during the pandemic: the isolation, loneliness, and confusion as well as the loss of power, voice and citizenship.

"There was nothing inevitable about the 68 per cent of deaths from COVID-19 among disabled people in Wales."

She added: "We want answers as to why the lives of disabled people appeared so expendable and moreover to ensure that never again do we face the mass death and real suffering experienced by so many during the pandemic."

A Welsh Government spokesperson said they would not comment on any matters relating to the inquiry while hearings are under way.

The spokesperson added: "Welsh ministers and government officials will be giving detailed evidence over the next three weeks.

"We have made it clear that we continue to engage fully with the inquiry to ensure all actions and decisions are fully and properly scrutinised."

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Disabled people made up 68 of Covid deaths in mid-2020, hears inquiry

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Two organisations who work for disabled people have spoken out at the Covid-19 inquiry about the "mass death and real suffering" felt by the...