1. Are extremely overweight individuals protected under the Rehabilitation Act from discrimination based on their morbid obesity?
2. Can a person be considered as having a disability and thus be eligible for the protections of the Act when that individual can rid herself of the "disability" by simply losing weight?
3. Assess the judge's remarks in the first three sentences of the conclusion of the decision.

[Bonnie Cook applied for the position of institutional attendant at the Ladd Center, a state residential facility for retarded persons. She was 5 feet, 2 inches tall and weighed more than 320 pounds. During a prehire physical examination administered by a nurse, no limitation was found that infringed on her ability to do the job. The Department of Mental Health, Retardation, and Hospitals (MHRH) refused to hire her because her obesity was a health risk to herself and she might put retarded residents at risk in emergency situations because of her limited mobility. The agency was also concerned over possible absenteeism and costs of workers' compensation injuries that could occur because of her obesity. Ms. Cook sued RIMHRH under the Rehabilitation Act.] SELYA, C. J.… At the times material hereto, defendant-appellant Department of Mental Health, Retardation, and Hospitals (MHRH), a subdivision of the Rhode Island state government, operated the Ladd Center as a residential facility for retarded persons. Plaintiffappellee Bonnie Cook worked at Ladd as an institutional attendant for the mentally retarded from 1978 to 1980, and again from 1981 to 1986. Both times she departed voluntarily, leaving behind a spotless work record. The defendant concedes that Cook's past performance met its legitimate expectations.
In 1988, when plaintiff reapplied for the identical position, she stood 50 200 tall and weighed over 320 pounds. During the routine pre-hire physical, a nurse employed byMHRH concluded that plaintiff was morbidly obese but found no limitations that impinged upon her ability to do the job. Notwithstanding that plaintiff passed the physical examination, MHRH balked. It claimed that Cook's morbid obesity compromised her ability to evacuate patients in case of an emergency and put her at greater risk of developing serious ailments (a "fact" that MHRH's hierarchs speculated would promote absenteeism and increase the likelihood of workers' compensation claims). Consequently, MHRH refused to hire plaintiff for a vacant IA-MR position.