Improving the health of people with intellectual disability: past progress and future directions

Over the past decades substantial progress has been made in addressing health disparities of people with intellectual disability. The “era of awareness” (pre-2005) identified a “cascade of disparities” of more adverse health conditions, less attention to health needs, poorer health care access, and fewer opportunities for health improvement. This occurred alongside emerging governmental recognition of the poor health of people with intellectual disability. The “era of assessment” (2005-2015) saw