III 

112TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION S. RES. 284 

Designating September 23, 2011, as ‘‘National Falls Prevention Awareness 

Day’’ to raise awareness and encourage the prevention of falls among 

older adults. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

SEPTEMBER 26, 2011 

Mr. KOHL (for himself, Ms. MIKULSKI, Mr. ENZI, Mr. BLUMENTHAL, Ms. 

COLLINS, and Mr. SANDERS) submitted the following resolution; which 

was considered and agreed to 

RESOLUTION 

Designating September 23, 2011, as ‘‘National Falls Prevention Awareness Day’’ to raise awareness and encourage 

the prevention of falls among older adults. 

Whereas older adults, 65 years of age and older, are the fastest-growing segment of the population in the United 

States, and the number of older adults in the United 

States will increase from 35,000,000 in 2000 to 

72,100,000 in 2030; 

Whereas 1 out of 3 older adults in the United States falls 

each year; 

Whereas falls are the leading cause of injury, death, and hospital admissions for traumatic injuries among older 

adults; 


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•SRES 284 ATS 

Whereas, in 2009, approximately 2,200,000 older adults were 

treated in hospital emergency departments for fall-related 

injuries, and more than 582,000 were subsequently hospitalized; 

Whereas, in 2007, more than 18,400 older adults died from 

injuries related to unintentional falls; 

Whereas the total cost of fall-related injuries for older adults 

is $80,900,000,000, including more than 

$19,000,000,000 in direct medical costs; 

Whereas the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention estimate that if the rate of increase in falls is not slowed, 

the annual cost under the Medicare program will reach 

$32,400,000,000 by 2020; and 

Whereas evidence-based programs show promise in reducing 

falls and facilitating cost-effective interventions, such as 

comprehensive clinical assessments, exercise programs to 

improve balance and health, management of medications, 

correction of vision, and reduction of home hazards: Now, 

therefore, be it 

1 Resolved, That the Senate— 

2 (1) designates September 23, 2011, as ‘‘Na3 tional Falls Prevention Awareness Day’’; 

4 (2) commends the Falls Free Coalition and the 

5 falls prevention coalitions in 43 States and the Dis6 trict of Columbia for their efforts to work together 

7 to increase education and awareness about the pre8 vention of falls among older adults; 

9 (3) encourages businesses, individuals, Federal, 

10 State, and local governments, the public health comVerDate Mar 15 2010 02:20 Sep 27, 2011 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\SR284.ATS SR284

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•SRES 284 ATS 

1 munity, and health care providers to work together 

2 to promote the awareness of falls in an effort to re3 duce the incidence of falls among older adults in the 

4 United States; 

5 (4) urges the Centers for Disease Control and 

6 Prevention to continue developing and evaluating 

7 strategies to prevent falls among older adults that 

8 will translate into effective fall prevention interven9 tions, including community-based programs; 

10 (5) encourages State health departments, which 

11 provide significant leadership in reducing injuries 

12 and injury-related health care costs by collaborating 

13 with colleagues and a variety of organizations and 

14 individuals, to reduce falls among older adults; and 

15 (6) recognizes proven, cost-effective falls pre16 vention programs and policies and encourages ex17 perts in the field to share their best practices so that 

18 their success can be replicated by others. 

Æ 


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