President Obama Signs Rosa's Law

From the The Family Cafe (10.6.10):

Dear Friend,

We are contacting you today to let you know that President Obama has signed S. 2781, Rosa's Law. Although this new law does not change any services for person's with disabilities, it still represents a historic change for national disability policy.

From now on, the phrase "mental retardation" will no longer be a part of any federal rule or law, whether it is related to education, health or labor. It will be replaced with the phrase "intellectual disabilities" everywhere it currently appears.

This bill was originally introduced by Sen. Barbara Mikulski (D-MD).
She named the bill "Rosa's Law" after a young woman in her state that successfully advocated for the elimination of the phrase "mentally retarded" in Maryland state law.

You can read the full text of this new law at the Library of Congress website - Click Here.  (The final version is the last one listed.) There is also a statement on Senator Mikulski's website - Click Here.

This is an important milestone on the road to inclusion and acceptance for Americans with disabilities. Please join us in celebrating this moment, and feel free to share this message with others in your community.

Yours,

The Family Cafe

Comments

[Elizabeth]

This is a good followup to the Executive Order Mr. Obama released in July, I think*. To be honest, when I read the Order I thought "here comes more of the same talk, without any real action." It is comforting to see that progress is being made, even if it is very slow. Thanks for the post!

*http://www.disabilitytraining.com/wpblog/an-executive-order-for-disability-awareness/