IV 118th CONGRESS 2d Session H. RES. 1436 IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES September 10, 2024 Mr. Thanedar (for himself, Mr. Lawler , Mr. Swalwell , Mr. Espaillat , Mr. Mullin , Ms. Crockett , Mr. Johnson of Georgia , Mr. Soto , Mr. Green of Texas , Mr. Grijalva , Ms. Pettersen , Mr. Thompson of Mississippi , Mr. Vargas , Ms. Williams of Georgia , Mr. Ruiz , Ms. Brownley , Mrs. Cherfilus-McCormick , Ms. Stansbury , Mr. Goldman of New York , Mr. Carson , Mr. Schneider , Mr. Cleaver , Mr. Tonko , Ms. Craig , Ms. Sánchez , Mr. Mrvan , Mr. Gottheimer , Ms. Matsui , Ms. Tokuda , Mr. Huffman , Mr. Pappas , Ms. Kelly of Illinois , Mr. DeSaulnier , Mr. Torres of New York , Mrs. Watson Coleman , Ms. McCollum , Mr. Lynch , Mr. Evans , Mr. Kim of New Jersey , Mr. Fitzpatrick , Ms. Wild , Mr. Amo , Mrs. Napolitano , Mr. Williams of New York , Ms. Salinas , Mr. Davis of North Carolina , Ms. Schakowsky , and Mr. Raskin ) submitted the following resolution; which was referred to the Committee on Energy and Commerce RESOLUTION Recognizing suicide as a serious public health problem and expressing support for the designation of September as National Suicide Prevention Month as well as September 10, 2024, as World Suicide Prevention Day .

Whereas, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (in this resolution referred to as CDC ), suicide was among the top 9 leading causes of death for people ages 10 to 64 in 2022; Whereas, according to the CDC, suicide was the second-leading cause of death for people ages 10 to 14 and 25 to 34 in 2022; Whereas, according to the CDC, 1 individual in the United States dies by suicide every 11 minutes, resulting in 49,476 deaths in 2022; Whereas the number of people who think about or attempt suicide is even higher; Whereas, according to the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (in this resolution referred to as SAMHSA ) National Survey on Drug Use and Health data from 2022, an estimated 13,200,000 adults seriously thought about suicide, 3,800,000 planned a suicide attempt, and 1,600,000 attempted suicide in 2022; Whereas, according to SAMHSA, trends in suicide attempts and deaths by suicide have been increasing among adolescents; Whereas, according to SAMHSA, 3,400,000 adolescents aged 12 to 17 in the United States had serious thoughts of suicide, 1,700,000 made a suicide plan, and 953,000 attempted suicide in 2022; Whereas, according to the Department of Veterans Affairs (in this resolution referred to as VA ) National Veteran Suicide Prevention Annual Report data released in 2023, the number of suicides among veterans has continued to rise in the 20 years from 2001 to 2021; Whereas, according to the VA, suicide was the second-leading cause of death among veterans aged 45 or under and the 13th-leading cause of death for veterans overall; Whereas, according to the VA, the average number of veteran suicides per day rose from 16.4 in 2001 to 17.5 in 2021; Whereas, according to the National Institutes of Health (in this resolution referred to as NIH ), suicide is a leading cause of death in the perinatal period during pregnancy and until the first year postpartum; Whereas, according to the NIH, suicide is a leading cause of maternal mortality and accounts for about 20 percent of postpartum deaths; Whereas, according to the NIH, between 7,000 to 30,000 children experience their parent’s suicide each year in the United States; Whereas the stigma associated with mental health conditions and suicidal ideation hinders suicide prevention by discouraging individuals at risk for suicide from seeking lifesaving help; and Whereas September is an appropriate month to designate as National Suicide Prevention Month because September 10 is World Suicide Prevention Day , a day recognized internationally and supported by the World Health Organization: Now, therefore, be it;

That the House of Representatives— (1) recognizes suicide as a preventable national public health problem; (2) supports the designation of National Suicide Prevention Month ; (3) supports the designation of World Suicide Prevention Day ; (4) declares suicide prevention as a priority; (5) acknowledges that no single suicide prevention program or effort will be appropriate for all populations or communities; (6) recognizes that there is no single cause for suicide and that suicide is most often an impulsive act that occurs during a moment of overwhelming hopelessness and despair; (7) recognizes that mental health is equally as important as physical health; and (8) develops and implements strategies to increase access to quality mental health, substance abuse, and suicide prevention services.