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Senate Co-Sponsorship Memoranda
Senate of Pennsylvania
Session of 2017 - 2018
Regular Session
MEMORANDUM
| Posted: | September 13, 2017 02:09 PM |
|---|---|
| From: | Senator Wayne D. Fontana |
| To: | All Senate members |
| Subject: | October 2017 as “Spina Bifida Awareness Month.” |
| Please join me by co sponsoring a resolution designating October 2017 as “Spina Bifida Awareness Month” in Pennsylvania. Spina Bifida is a congenital defect of the spine in which part of the spinal cord and its meninges are exposed through a gap in the backbone. It often causes paralysis of the lower limbs, and sometimes mental handicap. Spina Bifida is one of the most common birth defects affecting 1 in 2,500 babies in the United States each year. Every woman of child-bearing age is at risk of having a child with Spina Bifida which is why it is recommended that all women who are planning on becoming pregnant consume 400 micrograms of folic acid daily. This vitamin can reduce the risk of having a child with a neural tube defect; however, it is not guaranteed. Many people believe a diagnoses of Spina Bifida insures a poor quality of life which is not true. Thanks to the new treatments over the past few decades, many individuals go on to live an independent and active life. |
Introduced as SR206