2025 has been an exciting whirlwind of both new initiatives and ongoing projects at the Lurie Institute!
Starting in January when the Lurie Institute’s Director, Dr. Monika Mitra, visited New Delhi and Kolkata to give two guest talks about disability and healthcare and ending in December with the announcement that two Lurie researchers were being recognized by the National Academy of Social Insurance with membership in their class of 2026, the Lurie Institute has been engaged in research and public activities that reflect our commitment to the advancement and betterment of the lives of people with disabilities.
Our Year in Review 2025 highlights some of the most important facets of our work during the past year. Separate from our Annual Report (stay tuned for that), the focus here is on the most prominent themes of our activities during the year.
The five themes for 2025 emphasize the new or deepening initiatives and projects that Lurie and its centers and partners have embarked on along with ongoing work that received important recognition or made a significant mark on the conversations around people with disabilities. We hope you enjoy this tour of our work and accomplishments in 2025.
1. Lurie Goes Global
The year 2025 marks the point when Lurie's previous work on international disability policy reached an entirely new level—the global level!
The year began with Dr. Monika Mitra, Director of the Lurie Institute, visiting India to give two talks. First, she spoke at the National Conference on Accessibility in New Delhi on successful disability-inclusive healthcare models in the United States and their potential for application within India’s healthcare system. Then, at the National University of Juridical Sciences in Kolkata, Mitra spoke about how to address gaps within reproductive health and provide effective care for people with disabilities.
In May came news that Dr. Mitra had been named a Commissioner of the Lancet Commission on Disability and Health. In October, the Lurie Institute was thrilled to join the World Health Organization’s Disability Health Equity Initiative. These developments have been preceded by extensive work at the Lurie Institute and its centers over several years that focused on global and international disability and health policy.
Learn More about Lurie's Global and International Initiatives
2. Research Impact Recognized
Lurie researchers published findings across many areas of vital interest to people with disabilities, including health and healthcare, community living access and quality, home- and community-based services use, and parenting and pregnancy barriers and challenges, and LGBTQ+ Identity among People with Disabilities.
We are so pleased that in 2025 Lurie research and researchers were recognized by various organizations:
- Natalie Chong, Joseph Caldwell, H. Steven Kaye, and Monika Mitra were honored by NARRTC as finalists for the Best Research Paper Award. “Outcomes of Person-Center Planning in Medicaid Home- and Community-Based Services” was recognized for its contributions to developing rehabilitation research and practice for the benefit of the disability community.
- Dr. Miriam Heyman, Project Manager of the National Research Center for Parents with Disabilities, received the Heller School at Brandeis University’s 2025 Early Career Research Investigator Award.
- Lurie researchers Joe Caldwell (director, Community Living Policy Center) and Ian Moura were recognized by the National Academy of Social Insurance with membership in NASI’s class of 2026. NASI seeks to bring together leading experts on social insurance policy, practice, research, and innovation.
Also of note: In 2025, a special issue of the Disability and Health Journal was the first issue of the journal to focus specifically on community living policy. The special issue featured several articles by Lurie Institute researchers.
Explore Our Research at the Lurie Institute and Our Centers
3. Resources to Support the Public
The past year was also marked by the addition of new data and information resources that will support both the disability policy and advocacy communities but also the general public of people with disabilities.
New Lurie Institute resources include:
- Parenting Disability Data Dashboard: Who are disabled parents? What U.S. states have laws that support disabled parents? What U.S. may terminate parental rights based on disability?
- Community Living Disability Data Dashboard: Who Needs LTSS? Who receives Medicaid LTSS? What disparities in LTSS exist?
- The Accessible Pregnancy Action Plan (APAP) is an innovative new tool focusing on supporting pregnant persons with disabilities. The APAP helps disabled pregnant people work with a peer to identify needs during pregnancy, labor and delivery, and postpartum.
Resources sheets and webinar recaps are available:
Disaster Preparedness: A Resource by and for Disabled Parents
Disabled Parents' Adoption Experiences: Webinar Recap
4. Carrie Buck 3.0: Permission, Pleasure, Power
Our third Carrie Buck Distinguished Fellowship conversation took place on October 28, 2025. This year’s distinguished fellow is Laura Millar, an independent consultant and the co-executive director of the Blind Sexuality Access Network. Laura’s conversation with Rebecca Cokley of the Ford Foundation focused on "Permission, Pleasure, and Power: Consent as the Foundation for Disability and Reproductive Justice."
Laura’s work highlights how disability justice and reproductive justice are connected at multiple and essential points. Thank you, Laura, for your work on behalf of people with disabilities!
Watch Permission, Pleasure, and Power
5. New Topics Explored in Our Webinars
Lurie’s parenting and pregnancy centers were especially active in 2025 hosting webinars on a range of topics and issues less often discussed within the disability community.
Here is a sample of our webinar listings:
- Strategies for Supporting Parents with Disabilities When There is Child Protection Involvement
- Keeping Families Together Training: Using Disability Law To Defend Disabled Parents
- Disaster Preparedness for Parents with Disabilities
- Disabled Parents' Adoption Experiences
- Lactation and Breastfeeding with a Disability