HR0654 93RD GENERAL ASSEMBLY

HR0654 LRB093 18167 HSS 43861 r

HOUSE RESOLUTION

WHEREAS, Over the past 20 years, advances in scientific research have changed perceptions concerning the mental health of children and adolescents and demonstrated that the same mental disorders that afflict adults can also occur in young people; and

WHEREAS, Scientific research has also demonstrated that early identification and treatment of mental disorders in children and adolescents greatly increase the chance of a favorable prognosis; and

WHEREAS, In January 2001, the Surgeon General of the United States noted that while one out of every ten young people in this nation suffers from mental illness that is severe enough to cause some level of impairment, only one out of five receives the mental health treatment that is needed; and

WHEREAS, The World Health Organization has reported that neuropsychiatric disorders in young people will rise by more than 50 percent by 2020, making such disorders one of the top five causes of disability, morbidity, and mortality among children and adolescents; and

WHEREAS, Studies concerning psychological autopsy have found that 90 percent of young people who end their own lives have depression or another diagnosable mental or substance abuse disorder at the time of their deaths, verifying a link between mental illness and suicide; and

WHEREAS, In 1999, the Surgeon General first recognized that mental illness and substance abuse disorders are, in fact, the greatest risk factors for suicidal behavior and that properly identifying and treating mental illness and substance abuse disorders are important parts of suicide prevention activities; and

WHEREAS, The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration of the Department of Health and Human Services recently reported that in 1999 almost 3 million young people were at risk for suicide, but only 36 % received mental health treatment; and

WHEREAS, The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention of the Department of Health and Human Services recently reported that in 2000 suicide was the third leading cause of death among persons 15 to 24 years of age; and

WHEREAS, Studies completed by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reveal that each year in the United States, almost as many adolescents and young adults commit suicide as die from leukemia, birth defects, pneumonia and influenza, and AIDS combined; and

WHEREAS, In January 2001, the Surgeon General issued a goal to "improve the assessment and recognition of mental health needs in children" in part by encouraging "early identification of mental health needs in existing preschool, childcare, education, health, welfare, juvenile justice, and substance abuse treatment systems"; and

WHEREAS, Several states have recognized mental illness and suicide in young people as public health crises, some even before the initiative of the Department of Health and Human Services, and as of today, the majority of states have either developed or are in the process of developing plans to identify mental illness and to prevent suicide among this segment of the population; and

WHEREAS, The efforts, initiatives, and activities of the Federal and State Governments should be used to support evidence-based practices for identifying mental illness in children and adolescents and preventing suicide among our young people; and

WHEREAS, A program known as the "Columbia TeenScreen Program", developed at the Division of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry of Columbia University, has been proven successful, offers technical assistance for implementation of a screening program, and provides all the components for such a program at no charge at this time; therefore, be it

RESOLVED, BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE NINETY-THIRD GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that we recognize that mental illness and suicide among young people are public health crises in this State and in this nation and that all residents of Illinois should make the identification of mental disorders and the prevention of suicide among the young people of this State a public health priority; and be it further

RESOLVED, That we recommend that every young person should be screened once during childhood or adolescence to identify mental illness and prevent suicide; and be it further

RESOLVED, That such a screening and identification process should employ sound, evidence-based tools; and be it further

RESOLVED, That all adolescents in middle school and high school should have equal access to such a screening process; and be it further

RESOLVED, That a copy of this resolution be transmitted to Governor Rod Blagojevich, the Secretary of Human Services, the State Board of Education, the Chicago Board of Education, the Directors of Public Health, Central Management Services, and Public Aid, the Director of the Administrative Office of the Illinois Courts, and the Illinois Parent Teacher Association.