PRINTER'S NO.  1916

  

THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF PENNSYLVANIA

  

SENATE RESOLUTION

 

No.

249

Session of

2012

  

  

INTRODUCED BY FONTANA, BROWNE, ORIE, KASUNIC, ROBBINS, HUGHES, DINNIMAN, VOGEL, M. WHITE, VANCE, KITCHEN, ERICKSON, TOMLINSON, COSTA, D. WHITE, BRUBAKER, RAFFERTY, BOSCOLA, WARD, WAUGH, WILLIAMS, SCHWANK, STACK, BLAKE, FARNESE, BAKER, PIPPY, FERLO, BREWSTER, ALLOWAY AND PILEGGI, JANUARY 24, 2012

  

  

INTRODUCED AND ADOPTED, JANUARY 24, 2012  

  

  

  

A RESOLUTION

  

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Designating Friday, February 3, 2012, as "National Wear Red Day"

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in Pennsylvania.

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WHEREAS, Currently, some eight million women in the United

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States are living with heart disease, yet only one in five

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American women believes that heart disease is her greatest

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health threat; and

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WHEREAS, Ninety percent of women have one or more risk

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factors for developing heart disease; and

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WHEREAS, Twenty-six percent of women die within a year of

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suffering a heart attack compared with 19% of men; and

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WHEREAS, While 1 in 30 American women dies from breast cancer

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each year, one in three dies of cardiovascular disease; and

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WHEREAS, Cardiovascular disease claims the lives of more than

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419,000 American females each year, almost one death per minute;

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and

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WHEREAS, Only 43% of African-American women and 44% of

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Hispanic women know that heart disease is their greatest health

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risk, compared with 60% of Caucasian women; and

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WHEREAS, Nearly as many women die of heart disease, stroke

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and all other cardiovascular diseases than the next three

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leading causes of death combined, including all cancers; and

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WHEREAS, Only 16% of women surveyed in 2009 identified

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cardiovascular disease as the greatest health problem facing

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them; and

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WHEREAS, In women, heart disease is too often a silent

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killer, with less than a third of women in a recent survey

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reporting any early warning signs, such as chest pain or

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discomfort before a heart attack, compared with most men; and

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WHEREAS, Common symptoms for women included pain of the jaw,

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arm or back, but most reported a delay in seeking treatments

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after the symptoms began of anywhere from 15 minutes to two

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weeks; and

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WHEREAS, Women are less likely to call 911 for themselves

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when experiencing symptoms of a heart attack than they are if

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someone else were having a heart attack; and

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WHEREAS, Go Red For Women® is the American Heart

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Association's national call to increase awareness about heart

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disease, the leading cause of death for women, and to inspire

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women to take charge of their heart health; and

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WHEREAS, All women should learn their own personal risk for

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heart disease by using tools such as the American Heart

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Association's My Life Check, Go Red For Women® Heart CheckUp, Go

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Red For Women® Better U and by talking to their health care

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providers; and

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WHEREAS, Making the right choices relating to proper

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nutrition, physical activity and other healthy lifestyle choices

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is essential to living a heart-healthy life; and

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WHEREAS, The truth is: our lives are in our hands and we can

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stop our number one killer together by sharing the truth and can

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be the difference between life and death; therefore be it

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RESOLVED, That, in recognition of the importance of the

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ongoing fight against heart disease and stroke, the Senate

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designate Friday, February 3, 2012, as "National Wear Red Day"

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in Pennsylvania and urge all citizens to show their support for

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women and the fight against heart disease by commemorating this

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day by the wearing of the color red; and be it further

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RESOLVED, That by increasing awareness, speaking up about

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heart disease and empowering women to reduce their risk for

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cardiovascular disease, we can save thousands of lives each

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year.

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