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[Congressional Bills 111th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H. Res. 437 Introduced in House (IH)]

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. Sanchez 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. Velazquez, 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

_______________________________________________________________________

                               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;
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
    Resolved, That the House of Representatives--
            (1) supports the goals and ideals of Mental Health Month in 
        order to place emphasis on scientific facts and findings 
        regarding mental health and to remove stigma associated 
        therewith;
            (2) recognizes that mental well-being is equally as 
        important as physical well-being for our citizens, our 
        communities, our businesses, our economy and our country;
            (3) applauds the coalescing of national and community 
        organizations in working to promote public awareness of mental 
        health and providing critical information and support to the 
        people and families affected by mental illness;
            (4) supports the finding of the President's Commission on 
        Mental Health that the Nation's failure to prioritize mental 
        health is a national tragedy, and
            (5) encourages all organizations and health practitioners 
        to use Mental Health Month as an opportunity to promote mental 
        well-being and awareness, ensure access to appropriate 
        services, and support overall quality of life for those living 
        with mental illness.
                                 <all>
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