SR0233 102ND GENERAL ASSEMBLY

SR0233 LRB102 17560 MST 23222 r

SENATE RESOLUTION

WHEREAS, Many peoples with serious, chronic mental illness, such as schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, severe depression, or gastrointestinal disorders that include gastroparesis, nausea, and vomiting, require treatment with medications that work as dopamine receptor blocking agents (DRBAs), including antipsychotics; and

WHEREAS, While ongoing treatment with these medications can be very helpful, even lifesaving, for many people, it can also lead to Tardive Dyskinesia (TD); and

WHEREAS, Tardive Dyskinesia is a movement disorder that is characterized by random, involuntary, and uncontrolled movements of different muscles in the face, trunk, and extremities; and

WHEREAS, Tardive Dyskinesia can develop months, years, or decades after a person starts taking DRBAs and even after they have discontinued use of those medications; not everyone who takes a DRBA develops TD, but if it develops, it is often permanent; and

WHEREAS, It is estimated that over 500,000 Americans suffer from Tardive Dyskinesia; according to the National Alliance for Mental Illness, one in every four patients receiving long-term treatment with an antipsychotic medication will experience Tardive Dyskinesia; and

WHEREAS, Years of difficult and challenging research have resulted in recent scientific breakthroughs, with two new treatments for Tardive Dyskinesia approved by the United States Food and Drug Administration; and

WHEREAS, Tardive Dyskinesia is often unrecognized, and patients suffering from the illness are commonly misdiagnosed; regular screening for TD in patients taking DRBA medications is recommended by the American Psychiatric Association (APA); therefore, be it

RESOLVED, BY THE SENATE OF THE ONE HUNDRED SECOND GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that we declare the week of May 2, 2021 as "Tardive Dyskinesia Awareness Week" in the State of Illinois; and be it further

RESOLVED, That we encourage every individual in the United States to become better informed about and aware of Tardive Dyskinesia.