Full Text of SR1274 103rd General Assembly
SR1274 103RD GENERAL ASSEMBLY | | | SR1274 | | LRB103 43153 MST 76413 r |
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| 1 | | SENATE RESOLUTION | 2 | | WHEREAS, Epilepsy Awareness Month is a nationwide effort | 3 | | to raise awareness about epilepsies, seizures, and side | 4 | | effects and to improve the lives of people affected by | 5 | | epilepsy through education, advocacy, research, and | 6 | | connection; and | 7 | | WHEREAS, Epilepsy is a brain disorder characterized by | 8 | | recurrent and unprovoked seizures that can affect anyone, at | 9 | | any age, at any time; and | 10 | | WHEREAS, Epilepsy is a spectrum disease comprised of many | 11 | | diagnoses and experiences and includes a wide range of seizure | 12 | | types, comorbidities, control, severity, and outcomes varying | 13 | | from person to person; and | 14 | | WHEREAS, Epilepsy is the fourth most common neurological | 15 | | disorder; nearly 3.4 million people in the U.S., including | 16 | | 136,600 in Illinois, live with active epilepsy; and | 17 | | WHEREAS, Approximately half of adults with active epilepsy | 18 | | have annual family incomes of less than $25,000, and adults | 19 | | with epilepsy are more likely to report being unable to afford | 20 | | needed prescription medications; children and adolescents with | 21 | | seizures are more likely to live in poverty and have food |
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| 1 | | insecurity; racial and ethnic minorities represent more than | 2 | | 40% of people living with epilepsy and face various | 3 | | disparities in obtaining appropriate diagnosis, care, and | 4 | | epilepsy mortality; and | 5 | | WHEREAS, An increasing number of people are diagnosed with | 6 | | rare epilepsies, which are largely complex, severe, chronic, | 7 | | and even life-threatening, and collectively rare epilepsies | 8 | | account for a growing percentage of the epilepsy population; | 9 | | and | 10 | | WHEREAS, People with epilepsy need access to affordable, | 11 | | comprehensive, physician-directed, person-centered health | 12 | | care, and delays in accessing effective treatments increase | 13 | | the likelihood of breakthrough seizures and related | 14 | | complications, including injury, disability, or even Sudden | 15 | | Unexpected Death in Epilepsy (SUDEP); each year, it is | 16 | | estimated that 1 in 1,000 people with epilepsy die from SUDEP, | 17 | | and this number increases drastically to 1 out of 150 for | 18 | | people whose epilepsy is not controlled by treatment; and | 19 | | WHEREAS, Many treatments are approved to treat seizures; | 20 | | yet, 30 - 40% of people with epilepsy still live with | 21 | | uncontrolled seizures, and the epilepsy-related medical costs | 22 | | associated with uncontrolled epilepsy are two to ten times | 23 | | higher than those of controlled epilepsy; and |
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| 1 | | WHEREAS, Twenty-one percent of people with epilepsy have | 2 | | reported not being able to afford their prescription | 3 | | medication(s) in the last year; and | 4 | | WHEREAS, Non-medical drivers of health, such as social, | 5 | | economic, and environmental conditions including housing, | 6 | | employment, food security, transportation, and education, | 7 | | account for 80-90% of a person's health outcomes; and | 8 | | WHEREAS, Epilepsy and/or seizures impose an annual | 9 | | economic healthcare burden of $54 billion; and | 10 | | WHEREAS, In the U.S., 456,000 children live with epilepsy; | 11 | | students with epilepsy aged 6 - 17 years old have missed 11 or | 12 | | more days of school the past year on average, and 336,000 | 13 | | children have at least one seizure annually; and | 14 | | WHEREAS, Protections exist in the Americans with | 15 | | Disabilities Act and related civil rights laws, but people | 16 | | with epilepsy still encounter discrimination in many areas, | 17 | | including employment, education, and housing; and | 18 | | WHEREAS, Twenty-five percent of the general public say | 19 | | they would be nervous around a person with epilepsy; | 20 | | increasing public knowledge about epilepsies and seizure first |
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| 1 | | aid can change the way people think about epilepsies and | 2 | | seizures, decrease stigma, and improve outcomes; therefore, be | 3 | | it | 4 | | RESOLVED, BY THE SENATE OF THE ONE HUNDRED THIRD GENERAL | 5 | | ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that we declare November | 6 | | 2024 as Epilepsy Awareness Month in the State of Illinois to | 7 | | encourage Illinois residents to take action together so no one | 8 | | faces epilepsy alone; and be it further | 9 | | RESOLVED, That suitable copies of this resolution be | 10 | | presented to the Epilepsy Foundation of Greater Southern | 11 | | Illinois, the Epilepsy Foundation of Greater Chicago, the | 12 | | Danny Did Foundation, and CURE. |
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