[Congressional Bills 113th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H. Res. 212 Introduced in House (IH)]

113th CONGRESS
  1st Session
H. RES. 212

 Expressing support for designation of May 2013 as Mental Health Month.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                              May 13, 2013

Mr. Murphy of Pennsylvania (for himself, Mr. Thompson of Pennsylvania, 
  Mr. Lance, Mr. Cassidy, Mrs. Ellmers, Mr. Barber, Ms. Bordallo, Ms. 
  Brown of Florida, Ms. Brownley of California, Mr. Butterfield, Mr. 
Cardenas, Mr. Carson of Indiana, Mr. Cartwright, Mrs. Christensen, Ms. 
Chu, Mr. Cicilline, Ms. Clarke, Mr. Connolly, Mr. Conyers, Mr. Ellison, 
Mr. Farr, Mr. Fattah, Mr. Grijalva, Mr. Hastings of Florida, Mr. Honda, 
 Ms. Jackson Lee, Ms. Eddie Bernice Johnson of Texas, Ms. Kaptur, Ms. 
  Kuster, Ms. Lee of California, Mr. Levin, Mr. Loebsack, Mr. Ben Ray 
    Lujan of New Mexico, Ms. Matsui, Mrs. McCarthy of New York, Ms. 
McCollum, Mr. McDermott, Mr. McGovern, Ms. Moore, Mrs. Napolitano, Ms. 
  Norton, Mr. Peters of California, Mr. Price of North Carolina, Mr. 
Rahall, Mr. Rangel, Ms. Roybal-Allard, Mr. Rush, Mr. Ryan of Ohio, Mr. 
 Sablan, Ms. Linda T. Sanchez of California, Ms. Schakowsky, Mr. Scott 
 of Virginia, Ms. Slaughter, Mr. Smith of Washington, Ms. Speier, Mr. 
 Takano, Mr. Thompson of California, Mr. Tonko, Mr. Vargas, Ms. Wilson 
 of Florida, Ms. Esty, Mr. Van Hollen, Mrs. Kirkpatrick, Mrs. Beatty, 
   Ms. Bonamici, Mr. Garamendi, Mr. Lowenthal, Mr. Vela, Mr. Gary G. 
Miller of California, Ms. Hahn, Mr. Peters of Michigan, Mr. Duffy, Mr. 
Gerlach, Mr. Griffin of Arkansas, Mr. Yoho, Mrs. Blackburn, Mr. Rogers 
 of Michigan, Mrs. Roby, Mr. McKinley, Mr. Fitzpatrick, Mr. Buchanan, 
 and Mr. Heck of Nevada) submitted the following resolution; which was 
            referred to the Committee on Energy and Commerce

_______________________________________________________________________

                               RESOLUTION


 
 Expressing support for designation of May 2013 as 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 communities, families, and 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 post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) afflicts 15 to 20 percent of 
        veterans of the war in Afghanistan and 20 percent of Iraqi war veterans;
Whereas roughly 20 to 50 percent of all prison and jail inmates are diagnosed 
        with a mental illness;
Whereas mental illness is the leading cause of disability in the 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 2012, over 38,000 people died by suicide in the United States, and 
        more than 500,000 people in the United States attempt suicide each year;
Whereas suicide is the second leading cause of death among individuals between 
        the ages of 25 and 34;
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 is higher than for any other age group;
Whereas 1 in 4 Latin American adolescents report seriously contemplating 
        suicide, a rate higher than any other demographic;
Whereas Native Americans currently rank as the top ethnicity for suicide rates 
        nationwide;
Whereas studies report that people with serious mental illness die, on average, 
        25 years earlier than the general population;
Whereas untreated schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, and other psychotic 
        illnesses, especially in persons with a substance abuse disorder or a 
        history of violence, may result in increased violent behavior and those 
        who do not receive treatment are 15 times more likely to commit a 
        violent act than those who are receiving treatment;
Whereas lack of awareness of one's mental illness affects approximately 50 
        percent of individuals with schizophrenia and 40 percent of individuals 
        with bipolar disorder;
Whereas the delay between a first episode of psychosis and onset of treatment is 
        an average of 110 weeks;
Whereas medication and psychosocial therapies have proven effective in treating 
        mental illness; and
Whereas it would be appropriate to observe May 2013 as Mental Health Month: Now, 
        therefore, be it
    Resolved, That the House of Representatives--
            (1) supports the designation of Mental Health Month in 
        order to place emphasis on scientific facts and findings 
        regarding mental health and to remove the stigma associated 
        with mental illness;
            (2) recognizes that mental well-being is equally as 
        important as physical well-being for citizens, communities, 
        businesses, and the economy in the United States;
            (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>