Full Text of SR0090 99th General Assembly
SR0090 99TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY |
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| 1 | | SENATE RESOLUTION
| 2 | | WHEREAS, Youth ages 13 to 24 accounted for an estimated 26% | 3 | | of all new HIV infections in the United
States in 2010; this is | 4 | | particularly concerning as they only consist of 17% of the | 5 | | country's population; and
| 6 | | WHEREAS, Almost 60% of youth infected with HIV in the | 7 | | United States are unaware that they are infected; and | 8 | | WHEREAS, HIV-positive youth need support for medication | 9 | | adherence and self-care; without these skills,
the health and | 10 | | the lives of HIV-positive youth are in jeopardy, especially due | 11 | | to the difficulty of staying on a
medication regiment; and | 12 | | WHEREAS, HIV-positive youth need secondary prevention | 13 | | services to prevent the spread of the virus to others; this may | 14 | | include education, partner communication skills, and | 15 | | disclosure; and | 16 | | WHEREAS, HIV-negative youth who are at risk need primary | 17 | | prevention services to protect themselves from
HIV infection; | 18 | | and | 19 | | WHEREAS, Many youth fear the stigma of HIV, and have | 20 | | experienced discrimination and isolation from
friends, family, |
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| 1 | | or professionals (such as doctors and teachers) if their status | 2 | | is known or even suspected, and
they are in great need of | 3 | | supportive services; and
| 4 | | WHEREAS, The State of Illinois is responsible for the | 5 | | safety and wellbeing of the children who are
taken into the | 6 | | Illinois Department of Children and Family Services (DCFS); and
| 7 | | WHEREAS, There are no statutes or administrative rules for | 8 | | DCFS to address the issue of supportive services for | 9 | | HIV-positive youth and young adults; and
| 10 | | WHEREAS, DCFS lacks a proactive program of HIV
prevention | 11 | | information, education, and services for its wards; and
| 12 | | WHEREAS, DCFS should provide education for department
| 13 | | staff, foster and adoptive parents, and private agency staff | 14 | | concerning HIV prevention for at-risk
youth and services to | 15 | | those who are HIV-positive; therefore, be it
| 16 | | RESOLVED, BY THE SENATE OF THE NINETY-NINTH GENERAL | 17 | | ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that we call upon the | 18 | | Department of Children and Family Services and the Department | 19 | | of Public Health to collaborate and devise policy | 20 | | recommendations regarding HIV supportive services and | 21 | | prevention education for HIV positive and at-risk youth at the |
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| 1 | | Department of Children
and Family Services; and be it further | 2 | | RESOLVED, That at least 2 representatives from these 2 | 3 | | departments shall work together on a
report of policy | 4 | | recommendations, and they shall call upon the expertise | 5 | | developed by community-based
HIV service providers, | 6 | | researchers, and educators as they see fit; and be it further
| 7 | | RESOLVED, That the 2 departments shall submit copies of | 8 | | their report to the
Illinois General Assembly and the Office of | 9 | | the Governor no later than January 31, 2016.
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