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PRINTER'S NO. 25
THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF PENNSYLVANIA
HOUSE RESOLUTION
No.
26
Session of
2015
INTRODUCED BY MURT, BAKER, BARRAR, BISHOP, BIZZARRO, BOBACK,
V. BROWN, BROWNLEE, CALTAGIRONE, COHEN, CONKLIN, D. COSTA,
CUTLER, DAVIS, DeLUCA, DiGIROLAMO, DONATUCCI, EVERETT,
FARINA, FREEMAN, GABLER, GIBBONS, GILLEN, GRELL, GROVE,
HARHART, HENNESSEY, HICKERNELL, KAUFFMAN, KAVULICH, KIM,
KINSEY, KIRKLAND, LONGIETTI, MAJOR, MARSICO, MATZIE, McNEILL,
MILLARD, D. MILLER, O'NEILL, C. PARKER, PASHINSKI, PETRI,
PICKETT, READSHAW, ROSS, SAYLOR, SCHLOSSBERG, SCHWEYER,
SNYDER, SONNEY, THOMAS, VEREB, WATSON, WHEELAND, YOUNGBLOOD
AND McCARTER, JANUARY 21, 2015
INTRODUCED AS NONCONTROVERSIAL RESOLUTION UNDER RULE 35,
JANUARY 21, 2015
A RESOLUTION
Designating the month of March 2015 as "Brain Injury Awareness
Month" in Pennsylvania.
WHEREAS, Brain injury refers to the death or injury of brain
cells and the disruption of neural pathways resulting in changes
in the way a person thinks, feels and acts; and
WHEREAS, Acquired brain injury is an injury to the brain
secondary to trauma, stroke, postsurgical complications,
aneurysm, high fever, infection, near drowning, near
suffocation, near electrocution, poisoning and other conditions
which interfere with delivery of blood or oxygen to the brain;
and
WHEREAS, There are approximately 10 million Americans living
with acquired brain injury, including stroke; and
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WHEREAS, Brain injury due to trauma may be caused by a direct
blow to the head or being shaken violently and may be caused by
falls, motor vehicle crashes, bicycle accidents, sports and
recreation injuries, shaken baby syndrome, gunshot wounds and
assaults; and
WHEREAS, The signs and symptoms of traumatic brain injury can
be subtle and may not appear until days or weeks after the
injury or may even be missed; and
WHEREAS, Mild traumatic brain injury is often underdiagnosed
or misdiagnosed, with symptoms not always immediately apparent;
and
WHEREAS, Traumatic brain injury is the leading cause of
disability and death from birth to 40 years of age; and
WHEREAS, The cost of treating, rehabilitating and caring for
the victims of traumatic brain injury in the United States is
approximately $30 billion each year; and
WHEREAS, The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
estimate that 25% to 87% of inmates have a history of traumatic
brain injury; and
WHEREAS, A study found that 20% of the juvenile justice
population has been unconscious for 20 minutes or more due to a
traumatic brain injury; and
WHEREAS, It is estimated that there are 50,000 to 125,000
mild traumatic brain injuries, commonly referred to as
concussions, resulting from sports and recreation accidents in
Pennsylvania every year; and
WHEREAS, Nationally, children and youth 5 to 18 years of age
account for approximately 2.4 million sports-related emergency
visits for traumatic brain injury annually; and
WHEREAS, Seventy-five percent of all brain injuries are
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concussions from trauma, affecting more than 47,000
Pennsylvanians; and
WHEREAS, More than 130,000 Pennsylvanians are living with a
long-term disability resulting from traumatic brain injury; and
WHEREAS, More than 50,000 Pennsylvanians are treated and
released from emergency rooms for traumatic brain injury
annually; and
WHEREAS, More than 32,000 Pennsylvania children under 21
years of age have a medical history that includes a
hospitalization for traumatic brain injury; and
WHEREAS, Brain injury is the signature injury of those
military personnel serving in Iraq and Afghanistan; and
WHEREAS, This Commonwealth has a number of the leading
research centers for brain injury, including the Penn Center for
Brain Injury and Repair at the University of Pennsylvania, the
Moss Rehabilitation Research Institute, the Brain Trauma
Research Center at the University of Pittsburgh and the Center
for Injury Research and Prevention at the Children's Hospital of
Philadelphia; and
WHEREAS, Three organizations in this Commonwealth
specifically devoted to brain injury include the Brain Injury
Association of Pennsylvania, Inc., the Acquired Brain Injury
Network of Pennsylvania and the Pennsylvania Brain Injury
Coalition, and two organizations with a strong focus on brain
injury include the Disability Rights Network of Pennsylvania and
the Pennsylvania Association of Rehabilitation Facilities; and
WHEREAS, The Commonwealth has agencies with a specific focus
on brain injury, including the Traumatic Brain Injury Advisory
Board of the Department of Health; and
WHEREAS, The Commonwealth has several government programs
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that administer specialized brain injury rehabilitation and
community support programs, including the Department of Health
Head Injury Program and the Office of Long Term Living CommCare
Waiver program; and
WHEREAS, The best approach to the silent epidemic of brain
injury is to promote the awareness, prevention and treatment of
brain injuries; and
WHEREAS, Brain injury prevention and access to necessary
treatment and services can be promoted through community
education and a public awareness campaign; therefore be it
RESOLVED, That the House of Representatives designate the
month of March 2015 as "Brain Injury Awareness Month" in
Pennsylvania; and be it further
RESOLVED, That copies of this resolution be transmitted to
the Brain Injury Association of Pennsylvania, Inc., 950 Walnut
Bottom Road, Suite 15-229, Carlisle, PA 17015; to the Disability
Rights Network of Pennsylvania, 1414 North Cameron Street, Suite
C, Harrisburg, PA 17103; to the Acquired Brain Injury Network of
Pennsylvania, 2275 Glenview Drive, Lansdale, PA 19446; and to
the Pennsylvania Association of Rehabilitation Facilities, 2400
Park Drive, Harrisburg, PA 17110.
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