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Epilepsy Foundation Leader Honored at Anniversary Celebration of Historic ADA

Washington, DC, July 23, 2009—Sandy Finucane, vice president of legal & government affairs of the Epilepsy Foundation, recently received the Justice for All Award from the American Association of People with Disabilities at a ceremony on Capitol Hill. The award, which is presented each year on or around July 26 to commemorate the anniversary of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), recognizes individuals who contribute in extraordinary ways to the political and economic empowerment for people with disabilities.  

“Sandy’s commitment to assuring that people with disabilities have full equality in all aspects of life, including employment has helped to strengthen the American workforce,” said Tony Coelho former California Congressman, and primary author of the Americans with Disabilities Act. “We, in the epilepsy community, are grateful for her continuous efforts to dispel the myths and raise awareness of the condition.”

Other honorees include United States Secretary of Education, Arne Duncan, Senator Patrick J. Leahy, Senator Sam Brownback, Russ Owen, President of the Computer Sciences Corporation and New York Times best selling author, Karin Slaughter.

Throughout her career, Finucane has worked on a wide range of legal and civil rights issues affecting people with disabilities. Most recently, she lead the Epilepsy Foundation’s collaboration with hundreds of employer, disability, faith, civil rights and veterans’ organizations to facilitate the passing of the Americans with Disabilities Act Amendments Act (ADAAA), which clarifies for the courts that people with disabilities should have civil rights protection even if they take medication or use assistive technology. The legislation also addresses the definition of disability making it clear that Congress intended the ADA’s coverage to be broad, to cover anyone who faces unfair discrimination because of a disability.  

“Sandy has been an integral force in the Foundation’s efforts to ensure that people with epilepsy have affordable, quality health care, access to a wide range of medications and legal protection against discrimination,” said Eric Hargis, president and CEO of the Epilepsy Foundation. “Her record is stellar and she is truly deserving of the prestigious Justice for All award.”

^{About Epilepsy
When a person has two or more unprovoked seizures, they have epilepsy, which affects almost 3 million people in the United States and 40 to 50 million people worldwide. This year, another 200,000 people in our country will be diagnosed with epilepsy. To date, there is no known cure.}

^{About the Epilepsy Foundation
The Epilepsy Foundation, a national non-profit with affiliated organizations throughout the United States, has led the fight against epilepsy since 1968. The Foundation’s goals are to ensure that people with seizures are able to participate in all life experiences; and to prevent, control and cure epilepsy through services, education, advocacy and research, so not another moment is lost to seizures. For additional information, please visit www.epilepsyfoundation.org.}