Amended in Assembly May 26, 2015

Senate Concurrent Resolution No. 46

Introduced by Senator Bates

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(Coauthors: Assembly Members Achadjian, Alejo, Travis Allen, Atkins, Baker, Bigelow, Bonilla, Bonta, Brough, Brown, Burke, Campos, Chang, Chau, Chiu, Chu, Cooley, Cooper, Dababneh, Dahle, Daly, Dodd, Eggman, Frazier, Beth Gaines, Gallagher, Cristina Garcia, Eduardo Garcia, Gatto, Gipson, Gomez, Gonzalez, Gordon, Gray, Grove, Hadley, Roger Hernández, Holden, Irwin, Jones, Jones-Sawyer, Kim, Lackey, Levine, Linder, Lopez, Low, Maienschein, Mayes, McCarty, Medina, Melendez, Mullin, Nazarian, Obernolte, O’Donnell, Olsen, Patterson, Perea, Quirk, Rendon, Ridley-Thomas, Rodriguez, Salas, Steinorth, Mark Stone, Thurmond, Ting, Wagner, Waldron, Wilk, Williams, and Wood)

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April 23, 2015

Senate Concurrent Resolution No. 46—Relative to Arthritis Awareness Month.

LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL’S DIGEST

SCR 46, as amended, Bates. Arthritis Awareness Month.

This measure would proclaim the month of May 2015 as Arthritis Awareness Month.

Fiscal committee: no.

WHEREAS, Arthritis includes more than 100 rheumatic diseases
and conditions that affect joints, tissues that surround joints, and
other connective tissue; and

WHEREAS, Arthritis is a chronic health problem that is the
nation’s leading cause of physical disability among Americans
and is most common among people with multiple chronic
conditions; and

WHEREAS, Arthritis causes pain and loss of movement, can
limit everyday activities such as walking and dressing, and can
even lead to death; and

WHEREAS, Arthritis affects an estimated 52.5 million American
adults living with some form of doctor-diagnosed arthritis,
representing 22.7 percent of adults in the United States; and

WHEREAS, An estimated 300,000 children under 18 years of
age have a form of arthritis or rheumatic condition, representing
approximately 1 in every 250 children in the United States; and

WHEREAS, Arthritis costs the United States economy more
than $128 billion each year, $81 billion in direct medical care costs
and $47 billion in indirect costs; and

WHEREAS, Arthritis results in 992,100 hospitalizations and
44 million outpatient visits each year; and

WHEREAS, In California there are more than 5.9 million people
living with arthritis, including 38,000 children; and

WHEREAS, In California, 43 percent of adults with diabetes
also have arthritis, 52 percent of adults with cardiovascular disease
also have arthritis, and 38 percent of adults with high blood
pressure also have arthritis; and

WHEREAS, Among working age adults with arthritis in
California, 43 percent have some work limitations due to their
arthritis; and

WHEREAS, An estimated 67 million adults 18 years of age and
older will have doctor-diagnosed arthritis by the year 2030; now,
therefore, be it

Resolved by the Senate of the State of California, the Assembly
thereof concurring, That the Legislature understands the extent
of, and sympathizes with, the severity of the impact of arthritis on
California; and be it further

Resolved, That the Legislature recognizes the month of May
2015 as Arthritis Awareness Month and appreciates the efforts of
the Arthritis Foundation to seek access to care for all Californians;
and be it further

Resolved, That the Secretary of the Senate transmit copies of
this resolution to the author for appropriate distribution.