00             CS FOR HOUSE CONCURRENT RESOLUTION NO. 31(HES)                                                             
01 Proclaiming April 2004 as Traumatic Brain Injury Awareness Month.                                                       
02 BE IT RESOLVED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF ALASKA:                                                               
03       WHEREAS brain injury is a serious, national public health epidemic affecting at least                           
04 5,300,000 Americans; and                                                                                                
05       WHEREAS, every 21 seconds, someone in the United States will sustain a traumatic                                
06 brain injury, which equals more than 4,000 people daily; and                                                            
07       WHEREAS, each year, at least 50,000 Americans die and 80,000 Americans                                          
08 experience the onset of life-long disabilities as a result of sustaining a brain injury; and                            
09       WHEREAS, each year at least 600 Alaskans receive acute care for trauma related to                               
10 brain injuries, 150 Alaskans die from brain injury, and approximately 190 Alaskans                                      
11 experience the beginning of life-long disabilities requiring marked adaptations to daily                                
12 functioning as a result of sustaining a brain injury; and                                                               
13       WHEREAS prevention is the only known cure; and                                                                  
14       WHEREAS the mission of the Brain Injury Association of America is to create a                                   
15 better future through brain injury prevention, research, education, and advocacy; and                                   
16       WHEREAS, in partnership with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the                                

01 Health Resources and Services Administration, the Defense and Veterans Brain Injury Center,                             
02 the Brain Injury Association of America, and the Alaska Mental Health Trust Authority strive                            
03 to increase brain injury awareness, thus making prevention and safety measures part of the                              
04 American culture in an effort to decrease the number of brain injuries;                                                 
05       BE IT RESOLVED that the Alaska State Legislature proclaims the month of                                         
06 April 2004 as Traumatic Brain Injury Awareness Month; and be it                                                         
07       FURTHER RESOLVED that the Alaska State Legislature urges schools, community                                     
08 groups, and other public and private agencies and individuals to observe Traumatic Brain                                
09 Injury Awareness Month with appropriate activities that increase the public's awareness of                              
10 traumatic brain injury, the leading causes of traumatic brain injury, and ways of preventing                            
11 traumatic brain injury.