[Congressional Record Volume 140, Number 35 (Thursday, March 24, 1994)]
[Senate]
[Page S]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]


[Congressional Record: March 24, 1994]
From the Congressional Record Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]

 
                      MENTAL HEALTH AWARENESS WEEK

 Mr. SIMON. Mr. President, today, along with 21 of my 
colleagues, I am introducing a joint resolution designating the week of 
October 2, 1994 through October 8, 1994, as Mental Illness Awareness 
Week.
  For the past 10 years, Congress has designated a week in October as 
Mental Illness Awareness Week. The goal of this resolution is to 
educate the American public about mental illness and to dispel the 
myths associated with this type of disease. The American Psychiatric 
Association continues to play a leading role in the effort to educate 
the American public.
  Mental illness affects all social, ethnic, and national groups. 
Approximately 40 million Americans, one out of five adults, suffer from 
diagnosable mental disorders. Available statistics reveal that out of 
this 40 million, between 7 and 12 million children suffer from serious 
mental disorders. One-third of our elderly population suffers from 
significant symptoms of mental illness.
  Approximately one-third of homeless individuals have psychiatric 
disorders. Often, these individuals have been discharged from hospitals 
and receive inadequate follow-up services.
  Individuals who are HIV positive are vulnerable to mental illness as 
well. Approximately 20 to 25 percent of those with the HIV virus will 
develop psychiatric problems along with the first signs of this 
disease; more than 60 percent of AIDS patients will ultimately suffer 
neuropsychiatric consequences.
  Statistics also reveal that the vast majority of the 30,000 who 
commit suicide annually have a metal or addictive disorder.
  Women are twice as likely to experience a major depression as men. An 
estimated 12 percent of women experience some form of major depression 
over their lifetime.
  Mental illness affects not only individuals, but society as well. 
Direct treatment costs and indirect costs from lost productivity 
associated with mental illness amount to billions of dollars each year. 
For fiscal year 1993, however, total Federal expenditures on research 
into the causes and treatment of mental illness was only $583 million. 
We must do much better. Only one out of four Americans with mental 
illness seeks appropriate treatment even though treatment can help 80 
percent of those affected.
  Each day the media reveals the human tragedies associated with mental 
illness. Yet we often do not really understand the severity of the 
problem until it affects someone close to us. At that point, the stigma 
attached to mental illness becomes very real. Asked to rank 21 
categories of disability, from the least offensive to the most, 
respondents placed mental illness at the bottom of the list. In 
American society, ex-convicts stand higher on the ladder of social 
acceptability.
  This resolution attempts to educate our society about mental illness 
and to combat the stigma surrounding this type of disease. People 
struggling with mental disorders are not evil. They are not incapable 
of surviving in society. In fact, with proper treatment, the vast 
majority of those who confront a period of mental illness during their 
lives can move on to be fully productive, self-sufficient members of 
society.
  Public apathy and misunderstanding must be overcome if we are to help 
the mentally ill to lead productive lives. I ask my colleagues to join 
in this effort by cosponsoring this joint resolution.

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