Full Text of HR0478 99th General Assembly
HR0478 99TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY |
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| 1 | | HOUSE RESOLUTION
| 2 | | WHEREAS, Mental health is a state of well-being in which | 3 | | the individual realizes his or her own abilities, can cope with | 4 | | the normal stresses of life, can work productively and | 5 | | fruitfully, and is able to make a contribution to his or her | 6 | | community; and
| 7 | | WHEREAS, There is a stigma around mental health issues that | 8 | | can often prevent informed conversations on mental health | 9 | | issues as well as proper treatment from taking place; removing | 10 | | the stigma surrounding mental health issues will allow those | 11 | | suffering with mental health issues to more easily seek | 12 | | treatment and gain an understanding of their condition; and
| 13 | | WHEREAS, Mental illnesses are health conditions that are | 14 | | characterized by alterations in thinking, mood, or behavior, or | 15 | | some combination thereof, associated with distress or impaired | 16 | | functioning; behavioral health is defined as the behaviors and | 17 | | biology relating to a person's mental well-being, ability to | 18 | | function in everyday life, and concept of self; and
| 19 | | WHEREAS, Mental illnesses take on a wide variety of forms, | 20 | | including, but not limited to, mood disorders such as | 21 | | depression, anxiety disorders, schizophrenia, dementias, and | 22 | | eating disorders, which can be associated with learning |
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| 1 | | disabilities; and
| 2 | | WHEREAS, Learning disabilities are neurologically based | 3 | | mental processing disabilities that can give rise to | 4 | | difficulties in acquiring knowledge and skills; learning | 5 | | disabilities include, but are not limited to, autism, dyslexia, | 6 | | visual processing disorders, auditory processing disorders, | 7 | | ADHD, dyscalculia, dysgraphia, and dyspraxia; and | 8 | | WHEREAS, Children with learning disabilities are | 9 | | disproportionately affected by mental health issues; 36% of | 10 | | children with a learning disability will also develop mental | 11 | | health issues; and
| 12 | | WHEREAS, Mental health is essential to one's overall health | 13 | | and well-being, and mental health issues can strike a person | 14 | | regardless of his or her age, gender, race, ethnicity, | 15 | | religion, or economic status; and
| 16 | | WHEREAS, There is a lack of awareness of how to treat | 17 | | mental health issues and of resources available for that | 18 | | purpose; there is also a crisis of unaddressed mental health | 19 | | issues in the United States and the State of Illinois; and
| 20 | | WHEREAS, Those suffering from a mental illness and their | 21 | | loved ones often do not understand how to identify the symptoms |
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| 1 | | and warning signs; and
| 2 | | WHEREAS, Untreated mental health issues lead to lost | 3 | | potential and numerous societal problems, such as increased | 4 | | incarceration rates, substance abuse rates, and emergency room | 5 | | visits; and | 6 | | WHEREAS, According to the National Institute of Mental | 7 | | Health, there are an estimated 43.7 million adults with a | 8 | | mental disorder, or 18.6% of the total adult population in the | 9 | | United States; just over 20% of American children, either | 10 | | currently or at some point during their life, have or will have | 11 | | a seriously debilitating mental disorder; and
| 12 | | WHEREAS, The National Survey on Drug Use and Health found | 13 | | that only 58.7% of adults in the United States with a serious | 14 | | mental illness received treatment for a mental health problem; | 15 | | and
| 16 | | WHEREAS, The National Health and Nutrition Examination | 17 | | Survey found that only 50.6% of children with mental disorders | 18 | | had received treatment for their disorder within the past year; | 19 | | and
| 20 | | WHEREAS, With proper treatment, many mental health | 21 | | problems can dissipate or be reduced to a level where the |
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| 1 | | person can fully function; and
| 2 | | WHEREAS, According to the National Alliance on Mental | 3 | | Illness, successful treatment rates for mental illness are | 4 | | extremely high and range from between 60% to 80%; the | 5 | | successful treatment rate for schizophrenia is roughly 60%, | 6 | | while depression is 70% and bipolar disorder is 80%; and | 7 | | WHEREAS, People with mental illness who are in treatment | 8 | | can lead full, productive lives in their communities; and
| 9 | | WHEREAS, The Bureau of Labor Statistics estimates that 89.3 | 10 | | million Americans live in federally designated Mental Health | 11 | | Professional Shortage areas, where there is little to no access | 12 | | to mental health professionals; and
| 13 | | WHEREAS, A Journal of Psychiatric Services survey found | 14 | | that 47% of people untreated for mental health issues reported | 15 | | cost as a reason not to seek treatment; the same survey also | 16 | | found that 66% of untreated mental health patients did not go | 17 | | to a doctor because they thought the problem would get better | 18 | | on its own; and
| 19 | | WHEREAS, Six of 12 City of Chicago public mental health | 20 | | clinics were closed in 2012; and
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| 1 | | WHEREAS, A total of 64.2% of inmates in local jails | 2 | | satisfied the criteria for a mental health problem currently or | 3 | | in the previous year; and | 4 | | WHEREAS, The United States Department of Justice's Survey | 5 | | of Inmates in State and Federal Correctional Facilities found | 6 | | that fewer than half of inmates with a mental health problem | 7 | | have ever received treatment and only one-third received mental | 8 | | health treatment after admission; and
| 9 | | WHEREAS, The National Alliance on Mental Illness found that | 10 | | states collectively cut $1.8 billion from their mental health | 11 | | budgets during the recession; the organization also found that, | 12 | | from 2009 to 2012, Illinois cut mental health funding by $187 | 13 | | million, a 31.7% reduction; Illinois cut the fourth most of any | 14 | | state during this time period; and
| 15 | | WHEREAS, The Affordable Care Act makes behavioral and | 16 | | mental health treatment available to people throughout the | 17 | | country, especially those who could not previously afford | 18 | | treatment; and
| 19 | | WHEREAS, Mental health issues influence all branches of | 20 | | State government, including public health, children and family | 21 | | services, criminal justice, housing, employment, and other | 22 | | services; and
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| 1 | | WHEREAS, It should be a fundamental goal of the State of | 2 | | Illinois to ensure proper awareness, identification, and | 3 | | treatment for mental health issues; therefore, be it
| 4 | | RESOLVED, BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE | 5 | | NINETY-NINTH GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that we | 6 | | acknowledge the seriousness of mental health issues in Illinois | 7 | | and strive to improve awareness and treatment of these issues; | 8 | | and be it further
| 9 | | RESOLVED, That we urge the members of the General Assembly | 10 | | to have discussions and forums with their communities to | 11 | | promote awareness of mental health issues and access to mental | 12 | | health resources; and be it further | 13 | | RESOLVED, That we encourage the members of the General | 14 | | Assembly and all school districts in Illinois to post | 15 | | information on mental health issues and local treatment | 16 | | resources on their public websites; and be it further | 17 | | RESOLVED, That we encourage all school districts in | 18 | | Illinois to implement mental health screenings to properly | 19 | | identify students with mental health problems; and be it | 20 | | further |
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| 1 | | RESOLVED, That we encourage the federal government to | 2 | | improve mental health awareness, treatment, and funding to | 3 | | improve the lives of citizens struggling with mental health | 4 | | issues; and be it further | 5 | | RESOLVED, That suitable copies of this resolution be | 6 | | delivered to President Barack Obama, the United States House of | 7 | | Representatives, and the United States Senate to review and | 8 | | discuss at the national level.
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