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1
HOUSE RESOLUTION

 
2    WHEREAS, It has come to the attention of the Illinois House
3of Representatives that, on average, 22 veterans commit suicide
4every day; this constitutes a very serious problem in every
5state, including Illinois; and
 
6    WHEREAS, Those individuals have fought in recent conflicts
7under very demanding and dangerous circumstances; and
 
8    WHEREAS, For many veterans, their re-entry into a stable
9and productive civilian life has caused unexpected mental and
10emotional problems, resulting in Post-Traumatic Stress
11Disorder (PTSD) and other severe mental illnesses; and
 
12    WHEREAS, Medications are now available to mitigate the
13severity of those mental illnesses; and
 
14    WHEREAS, The State of Illinois has an obligation to provide
15its veterans the opportunity to acquire such medications;
16therefore, be it
 
17    RESOLVED, BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE
18NINETY-EIGHTH GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that
19we urge the Department of Healthcare and Family Services to
20develop a basic protocol which will provide direction on how

 

 

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1best to make available such medications to veterans suffering
2from PTSD and other forms of severe mental illness, such as
3schizophrenia, schizophrenia disorder, and bipolar disorders;
4and be it further
 
5    RESOLVED, That the chair and the minority spokesman of the
6House Veterans' Affairs Committee shall create a subcommittee
7within the House Veterans' Affairs Committee that shall monitor
8the preparations of such protocol and periodically make reports
9to the House of Representatives, the Office of the Governor,
10the director of the Department of Healthcare and Family
11Services, and the director of the Department of Veterans'
12Affairs not later than March 1, 2014.