SB 46-BRAIN INJURY AWARENESS MONTH  3:28:43 PM CHAIR SHAW announced that the next order of business would be SENATE BILL NO. 46, "An Act establishing the month of March as Brain Injury Awareness Month." 3:29:07 PM The committee took a brief at-ease at 3:29 p.m. 3:29:33 PM SENATOR LÖKI TOBIN, Alaska State Legislature, as prime sponsor, presented SB 46. She paraphrased the sponsor statement [included in the committee packet], which read as follows [original punctuation provided]: Senate Bill 46 would designate each March as Brain Injury Awareness Month in Alaska. This will help focus public attention on the prevalence of brain injuries and highlight ways to prevent these injuries. Both traumatic and acquired brain injuries can happen to anyone. These injuries can bring a lifetime of secondary health conditions, including persistent concussion symptoms, post-traumatic stress injury, physical impairment, and developmental delays. It's estimated that 3.2 to 5 million Americans live with long-term disabilities due to brain injuries, and Alaska has one of the highest rates of traumatic brain injuries in the nation. The Brain Injury Association of America reports that every 9 seconds, someone in the U.S. sustains a brain injury. The Department of Defense reports that over 430,000 service members have sustained traumatic brain injuries since 2000. Thousands of lives are impacted every day by brain injuries even though most traumatic brain injuries are preventable, especially by wearing a seatbelt when in a vehicle and wearing a helmet when skiing, biking, and snowmachining. Permanently designating each March as Brain Injury Awareness Month in Alaska will increase public awareness about the dangers of brain injuries and, potentially, help prevent future brain injuries among Alaskans. We ask for your support. 3:33:13 PM MACKENZIE POPE, Staff, Senator Löki Tobin, Alaska State Legislature, on behalf of Senator Tobin, prime sponsor, presented the sectional analysis for SB 46 [included in the committee packet], which read as follows [original punctuation provided]: Section 1 Amends the uncodified law of the State of Alaska to add a new section recognizing the importance of brain injury awareness in the State of Alaska. Section 2 Amends AS 44.12 by adding a new section to article 2 establishing the month of March as Brain Injury Awareness Month in Alaska. This allows schools, community groups, and other public and private agencies and individuals to observe Brain Injury Awareness Month with appropriate activities that increase the publics awareness of the prevention and treatment of brain injuries. CHAIR SHAW opened invited testimony on SB 46. 3:34:16 PM ANNETTE ALFONSI, Alaska State Coordinator, Unmasking Brain Injury, gave invited testimony in support of SB 46. She shared a personal anecdote and conveyed her experiences as someone who suffered a brain injury. She stressed that further awareness and education is needed to change outcomes and must happen systemically, not individually. She encouraged the passing of SB 46 to help raise needed awareness. 3:37:45 PM ANNA ZIERFUSS, Chair, Brain Injury Council of Alaska, gave invited testimony in support of SB 46. She said once a brain injury happens, suicide, alcoholism, and drug use were statistically more likely. She shared a personal anecdote and conveyed her experience as someone who suffered a brain injury. She pointed out that those with brain injuries who first went into emergency rooms after their injury had the lowest access to care, and it is an "invisible disability." Raising awareness would let those with brain injuries know that they are not alone, she said. 3:43:33 PM REPRESENTATIVE STORY shared her belief that it was time to bring awareness to this cause. 3:44:13 PM REPRESENTATIVE CARPENTER asked, "Why March?" SENATOR TOBIN said March was in alignment with the US Department of Defense (DOD) and was also historically in the resolution. 3:44:53 PM CHAIR SHAW opened public testimony on SB 46. After ascertaining no one wished to testify, he closed public testimony. 3:45:12 PM REPRESENTATIVE WRIGHT moved to adopt the proposed House committee substitute (HCS) for SB 46, Version 33-LS0325\B, A. Radford/Bergerud, 1/17/24, as the working document. CHAIR SHAW objected for the purpose of discussion. 3:45:35 PM MR. WHITT presented the explanation of changes in the proposed CS for HB 46, Version B. 3:46:38 PM CHAIR SHAW announced that SB 46 was held over.