IV 

111TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. RES. 437 

Supporting the goals and ideals of Mental Health Month. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

MAY 14, 2009 

Mrs. NAPOLITANO (for herself, Mr. ABERCROMBIE, Mr. ARCURI, Mr. BACA, 

Ms. BALDWIN, Mrs. BONO MACK, Ms. BORDALLO, Mr. BOSWELL, Mr. 

BRALEY of Iowa, Ms. CORRINE BROWN of Florida, Mr. BUYER, Mrs. 

CAPPS, Mr. CAPUANO, Mr. CARDOZA, Ms. CASTOR of Florida, Mrs. 

CHRISTENSEN, Mr. COSTELLO, Mr. DAVIS of Illinois, Mrs. DAVIS of California, Ms. DEGETTE, Ms. DELAURO, Mr. DOGGETT, Mr. DOYLE, Mr. 

DREIER, Ms. EDWARDS of Maryland, Mr. FALEOMAVAEGA, Mr. FARR, 

Mr. FILNER, Ms. GIFFORDS, Mr. GONZALEZ, Mr. GRAYSON, Mr. GENE

GREEN of Texas, Mr. GRIJALVA, Mr. GUTIERREZ, Ms. HERSETH

SANDLIN, Mr. HINCHEY, Mr. HINOJOSA, Mr. HODES, Mr. HONDA, Mr. 

JACKSON of Illinois, Ms. JACKSON-LEE of Texas, Ms. EDDIE BERNICE

JOHNSON of Texas, Mr. KENNEDY, Mr. KILDEE, Ms. KILPATRICK of 

Michigan, Mr. KIND, Ms. LEE of California, Mr. LEWIS of Georgia, Mr. 

LOEBSACK, Mrs. MALONEY, Mr. MARKEY of Massachusetts, Mr. MATHESON, Ms. MATSUI, Mr. MCDERMOTT, Mr. MCGOVERN, Mrs. MCMORRIS

RODGERS, Mr. MEEKS of New York, Mr. GARY G. MILLER of California, 

Mr. GEORGE MILLER of California, Mr. MITCHELL, Mr. MOORE of Kansas, Mr. MURPHY of Connecticut, Mr. TIM MURPHY of Pennsylvania, Mr. 

NEAL of Massachusetts, Mr. NUNES, Mr. OBERSTAR, Mr. ORTIZ, Mr. 

PERLMUTTER, Mr. RADANOVICH, Mr. RANGEL, Mr. REYES, Ms. RICHARDSON, Mr. RODRIGUEZ, Ms. ROS-LEHTINEN, Ms. ROYBAL-ALLARD, 

Mr. RUSH, Mr. SALAZAR, Ms. LINDA T. SA ́NCHEZ of California, Ms. 

SCHAKOWSKY, Mr. SCHIFF, Mr. SCOTT of Georgia, Mr. SCOTT of Virginia, Mr. SERRANO, Mr. SESTAK, Mr. SHERMAN, Mr. SHULER, Mr. 

SIRES, Ms. SLAUGHTER, Mr. SPACE, Mr. STARK, Mr. SULLIVAN, Mrs. 

TAUSCHER, Mr. TOWNS, Mr. VAN HOLLEN, Ms. VELA ́ZQUEZ, Ms. WATERS, Ms. WATSON, Mr. WAXMAN, Mr. WILSON of South Carolina, Ms. 

WOOLSEY, Mr. WU, Mrs. LUMMIS, Mr. SHUSTER, Mr. CUELLAR, Mr. 

PALLONE, and Mr. SABLAN) submitted the following resolution; which 

was referred to the Committee on Energy and Commerce 


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•HRES 437 IH 

RESOLUTION 

Supporting the goals and ideals of Mental Health Month. 

Whereas the mental health and well-being of people in the 

United States is a critical issue that affects not only 

quality of life, but also the health of our communities, 

and our economic stability; 

Whereas the stigma associated with mental health continues 

to persist; 

Whereas more than 57,000,000 people in the United States 

suffer from mental illness; 

Whereas approximately 1 in 5 children and adolescents has 

a diagnosable mental disorder; 

Whereas more than a quarter of our troops suffer from psychological or neurological injuries sustained from combat, 

including major depression and post-traumatic stress disorder; 

Whereas more than half of all prison and jail inmates suffer 

from mental illness; 

Whereas mental illness is the leading cause of disability in 

our Nation; 

Whereas major mental illness costs businesses and the United 

States economy over $193,000,000,000 per year in lost 

earnings; 

Whereas untreated mental illness is a leading cause of absenteeism and lost productivity in the workplace; 

Whereas in 2005, over 32,000 individuals committed suicide 

in the U.S., nearly twice the rate of homicide; 

Whereas suicide is the third leading cause of death among 

people between the ages of 15 and 24; 


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•HRES 437 IH 

Whereas in 2004, individuals age 65 and older comprised 

only 12.4 percent of the population but accounted for 

16.6 percent of all suicides, and the rate of suicide 

among older people in the United States is higher than 

for any other age group; 

Whereas 1 in 4 Latina adolescents report seriously contemplating suicide, a rate higher than any other demographic; 

Whereas studies report that persons with serious mental illness die, on average, 25 years earlier than the general 

population; and 

Whereas it would be appropriate to observe May 2009 as 

Mental Health Month: Now, therefore, be it 

1 Resolved, That the House of Representatives— 

2 (1) supports the goals and ideals of Mental 

3 Health Month in order to place emphasis on sci4 entific facts and findings regarding mental health 

5 and to remove stigma associated therewith; 

6 (2) recognizes that mental well-being is equally 

7 as important as physical well-being for our citizens, 

8 our communities, our businesses, our economy and 

9 our country; 

10 (3) applauds the coalescing of national and 

11 community organizations in working to promote 

12 public awareness of mental health and providing 

13 critical information and support to the people and 

14 families affected by mental illness; 


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•HRES 437 IH 

1 (4) supports the finding of the President’s 

2 Commission on Mental Health that the Nation’s fail3 ure to prioritize mental health is a national tragedy, 

4 and 

5 (5) encourages all organizations and health 

6 practitioners to use Mental Health Month as an op7 portunity to promote mental well-being and aware8 ness, ensure access to appropriate services, and sup9 port overall quality of life for those living with men10 tal illness. 

Æ 


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