New US$10 note to be blind-friendly

Washington

THE announcement that a woman will grace the redesigned US$10 bill is overshadowing what could be an equally historic change in the way America's money feels.

The new US$10 note is the first slated to have raised elements that will help the blind and visually impaired distinguish between denominations, an accommodation for which disability rights groups have been fighting for decades. The Treasury Department was sued in 2002 over the problem and lost its case after six years of legal wrangling. It has taken even longer to turn the idea into a reality.