The Bureau of Labor Statistics has quietly confirmed a trend that should have made front-page news everywhere: more than 1.1 million additional Americans have reported becoming disabled in just the last three months. July alone added 234,000 new cases, marking the third straight record-setting month.

Data analyst Edward Dowd has tracked this phenomenon since February 2021, and his findings are staggering. In just four and a half years, nearly 5.9 million Americans have been added to the disability rolls. That’s a 19.6% jump in less than half a decade—an increase so steep that Dowd calls it nothing short of a national “disaster.”

The most alarming aspect isn’t only the raw numbers, but the silence surrounding them. Normally, shifts this dramatic in labor force health statistics would trigger congressional hearings, nightly news coverage, and intense debate about causes. Instead, the story is being buried. Corporate media outlets, which regularly devote hours of airtime to far less consequential issues, have mostly ignored the trend.

Why? That’s the burning question. Some suspect politics is playing a role, with officials unwilling to admit that policies of the last administration might have played a part in the spike. Others argue that corporate interests, particularly those tied to healthcare and pharmaceutical companies, don’t want scrutiny on anything that could suggest systemic failure.

Meanwhile, families across America are facing the consequences. More working-age adults are leaving the labor force, unable to work, and placing new strains on household incomes and the broader economy. Employers are seeing higher rates of absenteeism, insurance systems are being stretched, and the national conversation on health has barely acknowledged what’s unfolding.

If these numbers hold, America is facing not just a labor shortage but a public health emergency. Millions sidelined from the workforce means lost productivity, higher government spending, and a generation of citizens facing diminished quality of life. The question is not only what’s driving the surge, but why leaders—from Washington politicians to media elites—are refusing to confront it.

As Dowd put it, “This is a disaster.” The data is there for anyone to see. The American people deserve answers.