Roughly 22 percent of adults in the U.S.—53 million people—live with some type of disability, but not all cities are created equal when it comes to meeting the needs of this of this group. Researchers at WalletHub compared the country’s 150 largest cities, looking at everything from the cost of housing to the number of people with disabilities below the poverty line, weather, park accessibility, healthcare costs, and graduation rates.
The results were a little surprising, with mid-sized cities in warmer states dominating the top 10. Overland Park, Kansas nabbed the list’s top spot for its high scores for economy and heath care metrics, though the city’s quality of life ranking was just 78th.
Overland Park has the highest median earnings for people with disabilities—$46,345—which is nearly four times more than the national poverty line. Median earnings in Grand Rapids, Michigan, however, were more than $300 below the federal poverty line and the lowest of any city in the study at $11,523.
Grand Rapids wasn’t the worst city for residents with disabilities. It didn’t even make the bottom ten. That unfortunate achievement goes to Worcester, Massachusetts, just 40 miles west of Boston.
Source: WalletHub