The term “mental retardation” will be replaced with the term “intellectual disability” in the Social Security Listing of Impairments.
This change is based upon the adoption of the term “intellectual disability” by Congress, government agencies, and various public and private organizations.
Under this proposed change, an individual would be able to file a claim based on having “intellectual disability”.
We may find the individual to have a medically determinable intellectual impairment that is severe at the second step of the sequential evaluation process, but that does not meet or equal the requirements of the current listings. At the fourth and fifth steps of the sequential evaluation process, an individual with a medically determinable intellectual impairment has the residual functional capacity to perform his or her past relevant work, or has the capacity to perform a significant number of jobs in the national economy, and is therefore not “under a disability” as defined in the Act.
By replacng the term “mental retardation” with “intellectual disability” wherever it appears in the listings and rules the proposed changes would affect listings 12.05 and 112.05; the introductions to 10.00, the Part A adult listings, and 110.00, the Part B child listings for impairments that affect multiple body systems; the introductions to 12.00, the Part A adult listings, and 112.00, the Part B child listings for mental disorders; and sections 404.1513(a)(2) and 416.913(a)(2). We also propose to replace the words “mentally retarded children” with “children with intellectual disability” in the examples in sections 404.2045(a) and 416.645(a).