AJR135: Joint Resolution Text

LRB-4699/2

SRM:kjf:jf

2009 - 2010 LEGISLATURE

2009 Assembly JOINT RESOLUTION 135

April 22, 2010 - Introduced by Representatives Pasch, Shilling, Sinicki, Hebl, Berceau, Kaufert, Benedict and A. Ott, cosponsored by Senators Hansen and Wirch. Referred to Committee on Rules.

AJR135,1,1 Relating to: declaring May as Mental Health Awareness Month.

AJR135,1,3 Whereas, mental health disorders contribute to four out of the ten causes of disabilities in the United States; and

AJR135,1,5 Whereas, stigma prevents most individuals living with mental disorders from seeking proper care; and

AJR135,1,7 Whereas, up to 60 percent of family doctor visits are caused by underlying mental health maladies, such as depression, anxiety, or stress; and

AJR135,1,9 Whereas, an estimated 22 percent of adult Americans suffer from diagnosable mental health disorders in a given year; and

AJR135,1,11 Whereas, about 1.3 billion workdays are lost each year nationally due to mental health malaise; and

AJR135,1,14 Whereas, the U.S. Surgeon General reported that the indirect costs of mental illness imposed an estimated $79 billion loss on the U.S. economy in 1990, or more than $123 billion today; and

AJR135,2,4 Whereas, Mental Health Awareness Month will increase the public's awareness of the encumbrance of patients' circumstances, acknowledge the impact this disease has on their families as well, and recognize research being done in support for this issue; now, therefore, be it

AJR135,2,8 Resolved by the assembly, the senate concurring, That the legislature hereby proclaims the month of May in 2010 and in each year thereafter as Mental Health Awareness Month to coincide with the National Mental Health Awareness Month.

AJR135,2,9 (End)