PRINTER'S NO. 845
THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF PENNSYLVANIA
SENATE RESOLUTION
No.
101
Session of
2015
INTRODUCED BY FARNESE, TEPLITZ, HAYWOOD, AUMENT, GREENLEAF,
EICHELBERGER, SCAVELLO, FONTANA, KITCHEN, BREWSTER, MENSCH,
DINNIMAN, VANCE, PILEGGI, COSTA, RAFFERTY, WHITE, FOLMER,
BLAKE, SMITH, VULAKOVICH, BOSCOLA, ALLOWAY, HUTCHINSON,
BROOKS AND YUDICHAK, MAY 4, 2015
INTRODUCED AND ADOPTED, MAY 4, 2015
A RESOLUTION
Designating the month of May 2015 as "Amyotrophic Lateral
Sclerosis Awareness Month" in Pennsylvania.
WHEREAS, Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS) is better known
as Lou Gehrig's Disease; and
WHEREAS, ALS is a fatal neurodegenerative disease
characterized by degeneration of cell bodies of the upper and
lower motor neurons in the gray matter of the anterior horn of
the spinal cord; and
WHEREAS, The initial symptom of ALS is weakness of the
skeletal muscles, especially those of the extremities; and
WHEREAS, As ALS progresses, the patient experiences
difficulty in swallowing, talking and breathing; and
WHEREAS, ALS eventually causes muscles to atrophy and the
patient becomes a functional quadriplegic; and
WHEREAS, Patients with ALS typically remain alert and aware
of their loss of motor functions and the inevitable outcome of
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continued deterioration and death; and
WHEREAS, ALS affects military veterans at twice the rate of
the general population; and
WHEREAS, ALS occurs in adulthood, most commonly between 40
and 70 years of age, peaking at about 55 years of age, and
affects both men and women without bias; and
WHEREAS, Annually, more than 5,000 new ALS patients are
diagnosed throughout the nation; and
WHEREAS, In Pennsylvania, there are currently more than 1,000
individuals who have been formally diagnosed with ALS; and
WHEREAS, The $350,000 in State funding the General Assembly
appropriated for ALS support services in the General
Appropriation Act of 2014 provided services to more than 900
constituents and a substantial savings to the State budget and
taxpayers; and
WHEREAS, The ALS Association reports that on average,
patients diagnosed with ALS only survive two to five years from
the time of diagnosis; and
WHEREAS, ALS has no known cause, prevention or cure; and
WHEREAS, "Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis Awareness Month"
increases the public's awareness of ALS patients' circumstances
and acknowledges the terrible impact this disease has not only
on patients but on their families as well and recognizes the
research being done to eradicate this horrible disease;
therefore be it
RESOLVED, That the Senate of Pennsylvania designate the month
of May 2015 as "Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis Awareness Month"
in Pennsylvania; and be it further
RESOLVED, That copies of this resolution be transmitted to
the President of the United States, to the presiding officers of
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each house of Congress and to each member of Congress from
Pennsylvania.
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