BILL NUMBER: ACR 172	ENROLLED
	BILL TEXT

	ADOPTED IN SENATE  AUGUST 29, 2014
	ADOPTED IN ASSEMBLY  AUGUST 28, 2014
	AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY  AUGUST 28, 2014

INTRODUCED BY   Assembly Member Beth Gaines
   (Coauthors: Assembly Members Achadjian, Allen, Ammiano, Atkins,
Bigelow, Bloom, Bocanegra, Bonilla, Bradford, Brown, Buchanan, Ian
Calderon, Campos, Chau, Chávez, Chesbro, Conway, Cooley, Dababneh,
Dahle, Daly, Eggman, Fong, Fox, Frazier, Gatto, Gonzalez, Gordon,
Gorell, Grove, Hagman, Harkey, Holden, Jones, Jones-Sawyer, Levine,
Linder, Logue, Lowenthal, Maienschein, Mansoor, Medina, Nestande,
Olsen, Patterson, Perea, John A. Pérez, V. Manuel Pérez, Quirk,
Rendon, Salas, Stone, Wagner, Waldron, Weber, Wieckowski, Wilk,
Williams, and Yamada)

                        AUGUST 7, 2014

   Relative to Diabetes Awareness Month.


	LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST


   ACR 172, Beth Gaines. Diabetes Awareness Month.
   This measure would declare November 2014 as Diabetes Awareness
Month.



   WHEREAS, With more than 25 million Americans living with a
diabetes diagnosis, and many more going undiagnosed, diabetes affects
people across our country and remains a pressing national health
concern; and
   WHEREAS, Nearly 3 million Californians have diabetes, meaning that
more than 1 out of 10 adult Californians has diabetes; and
   WHEREAS, From 1998 to 2007, the prevalence of diagnosed diabetes
rose from 5.5 percent to 7.6 percent, representing a 38-percent
increase in one decade; and
   WHEREAS, California has the greatest number of people in the
United States who are newly diagnosed with diabetes; and
   WHEREAS, In 2007, about 7.9 million or 29 percent of adults in
California, or nearly one in three, had prediabetes, a condition that
often precedes type II diabetes; and
   WHEREAS, Prevalence of gestational diabetes, diabetes that occurs
in the context of pregnancy, has increased 60 percent in California
in just seven years, from 3.3 percent of hospital deliveries in 1998,
to 5.3 percent in 2005; and
   WHEREAS, Small studies suggest a consistent increase in diabetes
among children and youth; and
   WHEREAS, California's ethnically diverse population has a higher
risk and prevalence of type II diabetes; and
   WHEREAS, Individuals with type II diabetes often do not exhibit
symptoms; and
   WHEREAS, Diabetes is a chronic disease for which there is no known
cure, and is the sixth leading cause of death in the United States;
and
   WHEREAS, The serious long-term complications of high blood sugar
levels may include blindness, lower-extremity amputation, heart
disease, kidney failure, and premature death; and
   WHEREAS, The keys to reducing the incidence of, and complications
associated with, diabetes are education, early detection, control,
and proper treatment; and
   WHEREAS, The earlier a person is diagnosed with diabetes and
receives treatment, the better the person's chances are for avoiding
diabetes complications; and
   WHEREAS, The first line of treatment recommended by all treatment
standards is diet and exercise, because a healthy diet and the loss
of excess weight can have a positive impact on the body's ability to
fight off disease; and
   WHEREAS, It has been shown that modest weight loss may help to
lower blood sugar, blood pressure, and improve the level of fats in
the bloodstream, and may be beneficial to the treatment of diabetes
and other metabolic diseases; and
   WHEREAS, Traditionally, those at highest risk for diabetes
included older, overweight citizens who had a history of diabetes in
their families. However, in recent years there has been an alarming
increase in the growing number of younger individuals who are being
diagnosed with diabetes, which is attributed to lifestyle and
excessive body mass; and
   WHEREAS, Total health care and related costs for the treatment of
diabetes in California alone is about $24.5 billion each year; and
   WHEREAS, Diabetes in California represents a significant and
growing economic drain for families, employers, and communities,
especially during these difficult economic times; and
   WHEREAS, President Barack Obama has proclaimed November 2013 as
National Diabetes Month; now, therefore, be it
   Resolved by the Senate of the State of California, the Assembly
thereof concurring, That the Legislature declares November 2014 as
Diabetes Awareness Month; and be it further
   Resolved, That individuals are encouraged to seek early screening
and early treatment to reduce the rate of diabetes and its
complications among high-risk populations; and be it further
   Resolved, That health care workers are encouraged to improve care
for the control of diabetes and the treatment of major complications;
and be it further
   Resolved, That health care providers are encouraged, as they
detect and treat the emerging diabetes epidemic, to engage in an
aggressive program with their patients that includes a treatment
regimen that meets and exceeds minimum treatment guidelines, as well
as measurements of body weight and other associated risk factors; and
be it further
   Resolved, That the Secretary of the Senate transmit copies of this
resolution to the California Medical Association, the State
Department of Health Care Services, and to the author for
distribution.