Title: A resolution supporting the goals and ideals of Black, indigenous, and people of color ("BIPOC") Mental Health Awareness Month in July 2020.
Policy area: Health

Summary:
This resolution supports the goals of BIPOC Mental Health Awareness Month, including bringing attention to the mental health disparities faced by communities of color.

[Congressional Bills 116th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. Res. 657 Introduced in Senate (IS)]

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116th CONGRESS
  2d Session
S. RES. 657

  Supporting the goals and ideals of Black, indigenous, and people of 
     color (``BIPOC'') Mental Health Awareness Month in July 2020.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                             July 23, 2020

 Ms. Cortez Masto (for herself, Mr. Menendez, Mr. Booker, Ms. Harris, 
  Mr. Wyden, Mr. Van Hollen, Mr. Cardin, Ms. Stabenow, Ms. Rosen, Ms. 
Smith, Ms. Baldwin, Ms. Klobuchar, Mr. Casey, and Ms. Warren) submitted 
   the following resolution; which was referred to the Committee on 
                 Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions

_______________________________________________________________________

                               RESOLUTION


 
  Supporting the goals and ideals of Black, indigenous, and people of 
     color (``BIPOC'') Mental Health Awareness Month in July 2020.

Whereas July 2020 is ``BIPOC Mental Health Awareness Month'';
Whereas the goals of BIPOC Mental Health Awareness Month (formerly known as 
        ``Minority Mental Health Awareness Month'') are--

    (1) to recognize disparities in the incidence of mental health-related 
challenges faced by Black, indigenous, and people of color (referred to in 
this preamble as ``BIPOC'') communities;

    (2) to raise awareness of the systemic drivers of those disparities;

    (3) to educate patients, caregivers, and the family members of 
individuals who may be in need of care on the importance of recognizing the 
signs of mental illness, seeking evaluation and accepting diagnosis, 
receiving and adhering to mental health treatment, and counseling;

    (4) to highlight the necessity of culturally informed and culturally 
effective mental health services to increase receptivity to treatment among 
communities of color and to reduce the social and cultural stigma 
associated with mental health services;

    (5) to underscore the need to dismantle the barriers to access faced by 
individuals who seek mental health care services; and

    (6) to overcome and repair the mental harm and trauma that are 
experienced by people of color and caused by systematic racism and racial 
bias;

Whereas the Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic, which has 
        disproportionately impacted communities of color, is expected to have 
        grave and potentially long-term mental health implications due to the 
        traumatic stress associated with pandemic conditions, including stress 
        from--

    (1) the loss of resources to meet immediate and future needs;

    (2) grief and concerns for the safety of family and loved ones;

    (3) reduced social interaction and increased isolation and loneliness;

    (4) the stigma and xenophobia against Asian-American communities, 
including many incidents of hate during the COVID-19 pandemic, leading to 
negative mental health outcomes; and

    (5) a lack of consideration for pre-existing social-environmental 
disparities when addressing the disproportionate impact of COVID-19 on 
communities of color;

Whereas, even in nonpandemic times, the psychosocial stress of racial 
        discrimination, including exclusion from health, educational, social, 
        and economic resources, contributes to poorer health quality and higher 
        rates of chronic health conditions for communities of color;
Whereas BIPOC communities, already burdened by disparities in chronic illnesses 
        like lung disease, asthma, heart conditions, sickle cell disease, and 
        diabetes, disproportionately suffer from the mental health disorders 
        that are commonly associated with those chronic illnesses;
Whereas environmental strains, such as poverty, unsafe neighborhoods, and 
        chronic racial and ethnic discrimination, among other social 
        determinants of health, can significantly increase distress and the 
        overall mental and emotional well-being of poor youth of color;
Whereas an emerging body of research shows that past trauma inflicted on racial 
        and ethnic minorities has the potential to affect the descendants of the 
        survivors of that trauma;
Whereas, despite the necessity of diverse scientific and health care workforces 
        and culturally informed and culturally effective science and research to 
        address mental health disparities, including disparities in care, and 
        decades of efforts to diversify those workforces, there continues to be 
        a challenging pattern of continued underrepresentation of people of 
        certain genders and racial and ethnic groups in those fields;
Whereas mental health services and supports often are not aligned with the 
        National Standards for Culturally and Linguistically Appropriate 
        Services in Health and Health Care;
Whereas the lack of linguistically appropriate mental health services and the 
        lack of information about where to find those services decreases the 
        likelihood that families of color will seek help;
Whereas investment in linguistically appropriate mental health services will--

    (1) reverse the trend of families of color not seeking help; and

    (2) drive an increase in use of those services by people of color who 
experience mental health-related challenges;

Whereas the Office of Minority Health of the Department of Health and Human 
        Services has determined that Black adults are 20 percent more likely 
        than their White peers to report serious psychological distress;
Whereas the suicide death rate for Black youth has risen from 2.55 per 100,000 
        in 2007 to 4.82 per 100,000 in 2017;
Whereas Black youth under the age of 13 are twice as likely as White youth of 
        the same age group to die by suicide;
Whereas Black males ages 5 through 11 are more likely than their White peers to 
        die by suicide;
Whereas, in 2018, 42 percent of Black adults with a serious mental illness 
        received no treatment, compared with 35.9 percent of the total adult 
        population of the United States;
Whereas chronic underfunding of Federal treaty obligations for health services 
        for Tribal Nations has contributed to disparate mental health outcomes 
        for American Indians and Alaska Natives, who experience post-traumatic 
        stress disorder more than twice as often as the general population;
Whereas, between 2000 and 2020, the suicide rate for American Indian and Alaska 
        Native women and men has increased by 139 percent and 71 percent, 
        respectively, compared with a 33 percent increase for the total adult 
        population in the United States;
Whereas suicide is the second leading cause of death for American Indian and 
        Alaska Native youth ages 10 through 24;
Whereas the suicide rate for American Indian and Alaska Native youth is 2.5 
        times higher than the national average and the highest across all ethnic 
        and racial groups;
Whereas Latino adults and children face barriers to accessing mental health 
        services, including a lack of insurance, the high cost of health 
        services, low wages, poor transportation, work stress, and immigration 
        factors;
Whereas research shows that, in the Hispanic population, older adults and youth 
        are more susceptible than other Hispanic adults to mental distress 
        relating to immigration and acculturation;
Whereas fewer treatment and prevention services reach Hispanics than other 
        racial or ethnic groups in the United States due to the lack of 
        professionals being equipped to support culturally specific challenges;
Whereas, in 2017, suicide was the leading cause of death for Asian Americans 
        ages 15 through 24;
Whereas, in 2015, Asian adults with any mental illness had the lowest rates of 
        use of health services, prescription medication, and outpatient services 
        among all racial groups;
Whereas the rate of suicide among Asian-American women over the age of 65 is the 
        highest of any group in that age range;
Whereas the rate of suicide among Bhutanese refugees is twice the rate of 
        suicide for the general population of the United States;
Whereas Native Hawaiian youth in Hawaii have significantly higher suicide rates 
        than other adolescents;
Whereas Native Hawaiians and Pacific Islanders face greater stigma than is faced 
        by the general population of the United States faces in accessing mental 
        health care;
Whereas the first BIPOC Mental Health Awareness Month (then known as ``Minority 
        Mental Health Awareness Month'') was designated in honor of the late 
        Bebe Moore Campbell, who showed great dedication and commitment to 
        moving communities--

    (1) to support mental wellness through effective treatment options; and

    (2) to increase access to mental health treatment and services; and

Whereas communities of color have shown deep mental-health resiliency in the 
        face of decades and centuries of trauma and discrimination, underscoring 
        the efficacy and importance of resilience-focused and culturally and 
        contextually grounded prevention and early intervention strategies in 
        mental health: Now, therefore, be it
    Resolved, That the Senate supports the goals and ideals of BIPOC 
Mental Health Awareness Month in July 2020, which include bringing 
attention to the mental health disparities faced by communities of 
color in the United States, such as American Indians, Alaska Natives, 
Asian Americans, Blacks, Latinos, and Native Hawaiians and other 
Pacific Islanders.
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