UW–Madison’s Malachy Bishop and Stuart Rumrill have published a study in the Journal of Vocational Rehabilitation that is titled, “The employment impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on Americans with MS: Preliminary analysis.”
Bishop is the Norman L. and Barbara M. Berven Professor of Rehabilitation Psychology in the School of Education’s Department of Rehabilitation Psychology and Special Education. Rumrill is a doctoral student in the Department of Rehabilitation Psychology and Special Education.
The study examined the employment effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on Americans with multiple sclerosis (MS), a population, the authors note, that has historically experienced low rates of employment relative to the general population.
The authors surveyed 69 people with MS about their employment, health, and economic experiences between May and August 2020.
Their results suggest potentially significant job loss. Specifically, approximately 20 percent of participants who were previously employed reported losing employment as a result of the pandemic, and approximately 40 percent reported other work changes. At elevated risk for job loss were those with lower levels of education; African American workers; and workers reporting Hispanic, Latinx, or Spanish origin.
In addition, almost two-thirds of the participants reported that the pandemic had affected their financial status, and over half that the pandemic had affected their ability to access their MS health care.
Learn more about the study on the National Multiple Sclerosis Society website, here.