[Congressional Record Volume 145, Number 67 (Tuesday, May 11, 1999)]
[Senate]
[Pages S5057-S5058]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




  SENATE RESOLUTION 99--DESIGNATING NOVEMBER 20, 1999, AS ``NATIONAL 
               SURVIVORS FOR PREVENTION OF SUICIDE DAY''

  Mr. REID submitted the following resolution; which was referred to 
the Committee on the Judiciary:

                               S. Res. 99

       Whereas the 105th Congress, in Senate Resolution 84 and 
     House Resolution 212, recognized suicide as a national 
     problem and suicide prevention as a national priority;
       Whereas the Surgeon General has publicly recognized suicide 
     as a public health problem;
       Whereas the resolutions of the 105th Congress called for a 
     collaboration between public and private organizations and 
     individuals concerned with suicide;
       Whereas in the United States, more than 30,000 people take 
     their own lives each year;
       Whereas suicide is the 8th leading cause of death in the 
     United States and the 3rd major cause of death among young 
     people aged 15 through 19;
       Whereas the suicide rate among young people has more than 
     tripled in the last 4 decades, a fact that is a tragedy in 
     itself and a source of devastation to millions of family 
     members and loved ones;
       Whereas every year in the United States, 200,000 people 
     become suicide survivors (people that have lost a loved one 
     to suicide), and there are approximately 8,000,000 suicide 
     survivors in the United States today;
       Whereas society still needlessly stigmatizes both the 
     people that take their own lives and suicide survivors;
       Whereas there is a need for greater outreach to suicide 
     survivors because, all too often, they are left alone to 
     grieve;
       Whereas suicide survivors are often helped to rebuild their 
     lives through a network of support with fellow survivors;
       Whereas suicide survivors play an essential role in 
     educating communities about the risks of suicide and the need 
     to develop suicide prevention strategies; and
       Whereas suicide survivors contribute to suicide prevention 
     research by providing essential information about the 
     environmental and genetic backgrounds of the deceased: Now, 
     therefore, be it
       Resolved,That the Senate--
       (1)(A) designates November 20, 1999, as ``National 
     Survivors for Prevention of Suicide Day''; and
       (B) requests that the President issue a proclamation 
     calling on Federal, State, and local administrators and the 
     people of the United States to observe the day with 
     appropriate programs, ceremonies, and activities;
       (2) encourages the involvement of suicide survivors in 
     healing activities and prevention programs;
       (3) acknowledges that suicide survivors face distinct 
     obstacles in their grieving;
       (4) recognizes that suicide survivors can be a source of 
     support and strength to each other;
       (5) recognizes that suicide survivors have played a leading 
     role in organizations dedicated to reducing suicide through 
     research, education, and treatment programs; and
       (6) acknowledges the efforts of suicide survivors in their 
     prevention, education, and advocacy activities to eliminate 
     stigma and to reduce the incidence of suicide.

  Mr. REID. Mr. President, I rise today to submit a Senate resolution 
which would designate November 20, 1999 as ``National Survivors for 
Prevention of Suicide Day.'' Let me begin by defining the term 
survivor. This refers to anyone who has lost a loved one to suicide. As 
such, having lost my father to suicide in 1972, I am viewed as a 
survivor in the suicide prevention community. Nationally, more than 
30,000 people take their own lives each year in our nation. Suicide is 
the eighth leading cause of death in the United States and the third 
major cause of death among people aged 15-19.
  The suicide rate among young people has more than tripled in the last 
four decades. Every year 200,000 people become survivors due to this 
tragic loss of life. We arrive at this number by concluding that for 
each suicide, seven other lives are changed forever because of the 
death. As you can imagine, this is a conservative estimate by all 
accounts. Today in our country, nearly 8,000,000 suicide survivors go 
on with their lives, many of them grieving in a very private way. This 
is because there still remains in our nation a stigma towards those who 
take their own life as well as those who are left behind to cope with 
the suicide of a loved one. I can't begin to tell you how many 
survivors have written me expressing the shame and guilt they feel 
about their loved ones' suicide, many of whom are still unable to deal 
honestly with the tragic conditions which ultimately led to someone 
they love taking their own life.
  In the 105th Congress, both the House and Senate took very courageous 
steps to address the public health challenge of suicide by passing 
Senate Resolution 84 and House Resolution 212. Essentially, these 
resolutions recognized suicide as a national problem warranting a 
national solution. The resolutions also called for the development of a 
national strategy to address and reduce the incidence of outside.
  I am proud to have been the sponsor of Senate Resolution 84 and proud 
of my colleagues for having lent their support to ensure its passage. I 
also commend Representative John Lewis for his leadership in the House 
and to all the members who provided their support to ensure its passage 
in the closing days of the last session. We cannot however, stop here. 
We must continue to show our compassion and assert leadership to take 
the necessary steps to mobilize our national response for suicide 
prevention.
  Recently, there has been a fervor of activity and collaboration in 
both the federal and private sectors around suicide prevention. On the 
federal level, our Surgeon General, Dr. David Satcher has included the 
topic of suicide prevention on his public health agenda. In addition to 
Dr. Satcher's efforts, staff at the Centers for Disease Control and 
Prevention, the National Institute of Mental Health and the Substance 
Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration have focussed increased 
effort on the issue of suicide prevention. In the private sector, 
groups such as the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention, the 
American Association of Suicidology and the Suicide Prevention Advocacy 
Network have worked together to increase national awareness as well. 
There are countless others who, on a daily basis, make their commitment 
to assist in finding solutions to this national dilemma. The self-help 
groups, clinicians, researchers, and grass roots advocates are all 
making a vital difference.

  In the near future, I hope to see the national strategy that has been 
developed by many who stepped to the plate, as called for in Senate 
Resolution 84 and House Resolution 212, to chart a course for our 
national effort. I hope to see hearings in the Senate soon on this 
issue and hope we will look at the recommendations seriously and lend 
our support to making this report one that does more than collect dust 
on a shelf, but instead a report that charts the course we must pursue 
to reduce the incidence of suicide in America and to convey our 
national resolve.

[[Page S5058]]

  This year we will witness two events which deserve our recognition 
and support. On June 7, 1999 the White House will hold a White House 
Conference on Mental Health and later this year the Surgeon General 
will issue his report on mental health. The time has come when we must 
recognize that mental disorders are illnesses that can be treated 
effectively. We know that 90 percent of suicide victims have suffered 
from a mental disorder. Therefore, we must send a clear and 
unmistakable message that those who suffer should be encouraged to seek 
assistance and restore themselves to a healthy state of being. The 
Mental Health Parity legislation introduced by my good friends Senator 
Pete Domenici and Senator Paul Wellstone is a step in the right 
direction. Their leadership on this issue has my full support and 
respect. There should be no barrier for individuals to obtaining help 
for whatever illness, including mental illness, if there is effective 
treatment available to assist them. We must remove the stigma and have 
the courage to show acceptance.
  As you can see Mr. President, there is much that has been done but 
still much we in Congress can do to advance this agenda. Today, it is 
my intent to recognize the 8,000,000 survivors who all are at various 
stages of healing in addressing the loss of their loved one to suicide. 
I ask you to support me in turning their grief into hope, a hope that 
with acceptance and understanding, can lead our nation effectively 
addressing this very preventable public health challenge.
  Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that additional material be 
printed in the Record.
  There being no objection, the material was ordered to be printed in 
the Record, as follows:

                                           American Foundation for


                                           Suicide Prevention,

                                                      May 5, 1999.
     Senator Harry Reid,
     Hart Senate Office Building,
     Washington, DC.
       Dear Senator Reid: The American Foundation for Suicide 
     Prevention supports the proposed Senate Resolution calling 
     for a National Survivors for Prevention of Suicide Day. We 
     believe this resolution will build on the momentum started by 
     the 105th Congress in Senate Resolution 84 and House 
     Resolution 212, and will further the suicide prevention goals 
     articulated in these earlier resolutions.
       Specifically, the proposed Survivors for Prevention 
     Resolution will be instrumental in recognizing the 
     involvement of people who have lost a loved one to suicide in 
     prevention activities. It will also encourage them to come 
     forward, break the silence and join with other survivors as a 
     way to promote their healing.
       As you know, our Foundation is dedicated to seeing that 
     conferences for family members and friends who have lost 
     someone to suicide are held in many more communities. Working 
     together with other private organizations and public 
     agencies, we will use this resolution to help develop local 
     survivor conferences in cities across the country.
       Please know AFSP deeply appreciates the leadership you are 
     providing in Congress on this major public health problem and 
     is grateful for your sponsorship of Senate Resolution 84 in 
     the 105th Congress. We are equally grateful for your 
     willingness to sponsor this Survivors for Prevention 
     Resolution.
       On behalf of millions of survivors who want to prevent 
     others from experiencing a similar loss, as well as people 
     throughout our country concerned about the risk of suicide, 
     thank you.
           Sincerely,
                                                    Robert Gebbia,
     Executive Director.
                                  ____

                                         AAS, American Association


                                               of Suicidology,

                                                      May 6, 1999.
     Senator Harry Reid,
     Hart Senate Office Building, Washington, DC.
       Dear Senator Reid: With great enthusiasm the American 
     Association of Suicidology (AAS) supports the proposed Senate 
     Resolution designating November 20, 1999 as ``National 
     Survivors for Prevention of Suicide Day.'' We, furthermore, 
     applaud your continuing commitment to both suicide prevention 
     and the needs of survivors.
       Your proposal extends the success initiated by you in 
     passage of Senate Resolution 84 in making suicide prevention 
     a national priority. The subsequent passage of HR 212 and the 
     Surgeon Generals' affirmation of suicide prevention as a 
     public health goal are direct sequelae of your earlier 
     efforts; and the consequence of these efforts will, 
     undoubtedly promote the welfare of all our citizens.
       The AAS has embraced suicide prevention as part of our 
     mission and survivors as integral to accomplishing that 
     mission. Our annual Healing After Suicide Conference has 
     provided opportunities for thousands of survivors to learn 
     from and assuage each other's often unbearable pain, to 
     educate care givers to better understand the suicidal person, 
     and to create new models to help the healing process. Our 
     Directory of Survivors of Suicide Support Groups has been 
     accessed by thousands of new survivors needing to find help. 
     Our Survivor Division and newsletter Surviving Suicide 
     continue to network and service the needs of survivors.
       With the advocacy of our survivor members and your 
     continued leadership, we are increasingly hopeful that we can 
     significantly impact the incidence of suicide in this country 
     and ensure the health of generations to come.
           Sincerely,
     Lanny Berman, Ph.D.,
       Executive Director.
     Karen Dune-Maxim, M.S., R.N.,
       President.
                                  ____

                                                Suicide Prevention


                                             Advocacy Network,

                                                     May 10, 1999.
     Hon. Harry Reid,
     U.S. Senate,
     Washington, DC.
       Dear Senator Reid: SPAN supports the Senate Resolution 
     designating November 20, 1999 as ``National Survivors for 
     Prevention of Suicide Day'' that you have prepared. Further, 
     SPAN salutes you for this contribution to the well being, 
     growth and involvement of survivors of suicide in the 
     national effort to reduce the incidence of suicide!
       It is just over two years since you introduced to the 
     Senate of the 105th Congress, Senate Resolution 84 that 
     recognized suicide as a national problem and suicide 
     prevention as a national priority. The Proposed Senate 
     Resolution is therefore particularly timely now as it brings 
     before the Senate a reminder of their past action. It 
     spotlights the need for continuing Senate support and 
     identifies a powerful and potentially huge national resource 
     for the collaborative effort to reduce the incidence of 
     suicide.
       The last paragraph of the resolution will be most helpful 
     to all survivors of suicide. It identifies the part that each 
     individual survivor can play in the national effort to reduce 
     the incidence of suicide and confirms that, together we can 
     make a big difference.
       Thanks Senator Reid for your ongoing national leadership 
     for efforts to develop, implement and evaluate a proven, 
     effective national suicide prevention strategy. The proposed 
     resolution is another example of your dedication to this 
     effort. Thank you!
           Sincerely,
     Gerald H. (Jerry) Weyrauch.  
                                  ____



                                                         NAMI,

                                                     May 11, 1999.
     Hon. Harry Reid,
     U.S. Senate,
     Hart Office Building, Washington, DC
       Dear Senator Reid: On behalf of the 208,000 members and 
     1,200 affiliates of the National Alliance for the Mentally 
     Ill (NAMI), I am writing to express NAMI's strong support for 
     your resolution to designate November 20, 1999 as ``National 
     Survivors for Prevention of Suicide Day'', and to thank you 
     for recognizing suicide as a national problem and suicide 
     prevention as a national priority. More than 30,000 Americans 
     commit suicide annually, and while we do not always 
     understand why some choose suicide, we do know that it is all 
     too often associated with severe mental illnesses, 
     particularly major depression. Death by suicide is 
     unfortunately one of the most dire risks of untreated mental 
     illness.
       Sadly, more than 10 percent of individuals with 
     schizophrenia and more than 15 percent of those with major 
     mood disorders kill themselves. These are preventable and 
     senseless deaths that could have been avoided with the right 
     medical intervention and prevention programs. Your resolution 
     would recognize suicide survivors as playing a key role as 
     advocates and educators in prevention efforts, as well as 
     their place in eliminating stigma and reducing the incidence 
     of suicide.
       NAMI commends your past and present leadership and advocacy 
     in suicide prevention and education. Your continued 
     commitment and support has been vital in bringing national 
     recognition to the high incidence of suicide in our country. 
     NAMI strongly supports your resolution to designate November 
     20, 1999 as ``National Survivors for Prevention of Suicide 
     Day'', in recognition of the contributions suicide survivors 
     can make in suicide prevention strategies.
           Sincerely,
                                                     Laurie Flynn,
     Executive Director.

                          ____________________