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HR0654 |
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LRB093 18167 HSS 43861 r |
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| HOUSE RESOLUTION
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| WHEREAS, Over the past 20 years, advances in scientific |
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| research have changed perceptions concerning the mental health |
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| of children and adolescents and demonstrated that the same |
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| mental disorders that afflict adults can also occur in young |
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| people; and
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| WHEREAS, Scientific research has also demonstrated that |
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| early identification and treatment of mental disorders in |
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| children and adolescents greatly increase the chance of a |
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| favorable prognosis; and
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| WHEREAS, In January 2001, the Surgeon General of the United |
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| States noted that while one out of every ten young people in |
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| this nation suffers from mental illness that is severe enough |
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| to cause some level of impairment, only one out of five |
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| receives the mental health treatment that is needed; and
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| WHEREAS, The World Health Organization has reported that |
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| neuropsychiatric disorders in young people will rise by more |
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| than 50 percent by 2020, making such disorders one of the top |
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| five causes of disability, morbidity, and mortality among |
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| children and adolescents; and
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| WHEREAS, Studies concerning psychological autopsy have |
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| found that 90 percent of young people who end their own lives |
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| have depression or another diagnosable mental or substance |
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| abuse disorder at the time of their deaths, verifying a link |
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| between mental illness and suicide; and
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| WHEREAS, In 1999, the Surgeon General first recognized that |
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| mental illness and substance abuse disorders are, in fact, the |
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| greatest risk factors for suicidal behavior and that properly |
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| identifying and treating mental illness and substance abuse |
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| disorders are important parts of suicide prevention |
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HR0654 |
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LRB093 18167 HSS 43861 r |
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| activities; and
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| WHEREAS, The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services |
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| Administration of the Department of Health and Human Services |
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| recently reported that in 1999 almost 3 million young people |
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| were at risk for suicide, but only 36 % received mental health |
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| treatment; and
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| WHEREAS, The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention of |
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| the Department of Health and Human Services recently reported |
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| that in 2000 suicide was the third leading cause of death among |
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| persons 15 to 24 years of age; and
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| WHEREAS, Studies completed by the Centers for Disease |
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| Control and Prevention reveal that each year in the United |
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| States, almost as many adolescents and young adults commit |
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| suicide as die from leukemia, birth defects, pneumonia and |
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| influenza, and AIDS combined; and
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| WHEREAS, In January 2001, the Surgeon General issued a goal |
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| to "improve the assessment and recognition of mental health |
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| needs in children" in part by encouraging "early identification |
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| of mental health needs in existing preschool, childcare, |
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| education, health, welfare, juvenile justice, and substance |
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| abuse treatment systems"; and
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| WHEREAS, Several states have recognized mental illness and |
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| suicide in young people as public health crises, some even |
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| before the initiative of the Department of Health and Human |
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| Services, and as of today, the majority of states have either |
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| developed or are in the process of developing plans to identify |
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| mental illness and to prevent suicide among this segment of the |
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| population; and
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| WHEREAS, The efforts, initiatives, and activities of the |
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| Federal and State Governments should be used to support |
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HR0654 |
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LRB093 18167 HSS 43861 r |
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| evidence-based practices for identifying mental illness in |
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| children and adolescents and preventing suicide among our young |
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| people; and
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| WHEREAS, A program known as the "Columbia TeenScreen |
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| Program", developed at the Division of Child and Adolescent |
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| Psychiatry of Columbia University, has been proven successful, |
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| offers technical assistance for implementation of a screening |
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| program, and provides all the components for such a program at |
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| no charge at this time; therefore, be it
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| RESOLVED, BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE |
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| NINETY-THIRD GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that we |
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| recognize that mental illness and suicide among young people |
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| are public health crises in this State and in this nation and |
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| that all residents of Illinois should make the identification |
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| of mental disorders and the prevention of suicide among the |
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| young people of this State a public health priority; and be it |
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| further
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| RESOLVED, That we recommend that every young person should |
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| be screened once during childhood or adolescence to identify |
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| mental illness and prevent suicide; and be it further
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| RESOLVED, That such a screening and identification process |
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| should employ sound, evidence-based tools; and be it further
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| RESOLVED, That all adolescents in middle school and high |
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| school should have equal access to such a screening process; |
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| and be it further
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| RESOLVED, That a copy of this resolution be transmitted to |
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| Governor Rod Blagojevich, the Secretary of Human Services, the |
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| State Board of Education, the Chicago Board of Education, the |
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| Directors of Public Health, Central Management Services, and |
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| Public Aid, the Director of the Administrative Office of the |