BILL NUMBER: SCR 124	INTRODUCED
	BILL TEXT


INTRODUCED BY   Senator Fuller
   (Coauthors: Senators Bates, Block, Gaines, and Leno)
   (Coauthors: Assembly Members Baker and Chávez)

                        MARCH 30, 2016

   Relative to Congenital Diaphragmatic Hernia Awareness Month.


	LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST


   SCR 124, as introduced, Fuller. Congenital Diaphragmatic Hernia
Awareness Month.
   This measure would designate April 2016 as Congenital
Diaphragmatic Hernia Awareness Month.
   Fiscal committee: no.



   WHEREAS, Congenital diaphragmatic hernia (CDH) occurs when the
diaphragm fails to fully form, allowing abdominal organs to migrate
into the chest cavity and preventing lung growth; and
   WHEREAS, The federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
recognizes CDH as a birth defect; and
   WHEREAS, The majority of CDH patients suffer from underdeveloped
lungs or poor pulmonary function; and
   WHEREAS, Babies born with CDH endure extended hospital stays in
intensive care with multiple surgeries; and
   WHEREAS, CDH patients often endure long-term complications,
including pulmonary hypertension, pulmonary hypoplasia, asthma,
gastrointestinal reflex, feeding disorders, and developmental delays;
and
   WHEREAS, CDH survivors sometimes endure long-term mechanical
ventilation dependency, skeletal malformations, supplemental oxygen
dependency, enteral and parenteral nutrition, and hypoxic brain
injury; and
   WHEREAS, CDH is treated through mechanical ventilation, a heart
and lung bypass, which is commonly known as extracorporeal membrane
oxygenation (ECMO), machines, and surgical repair; and
   WHEREAS, Surgical repair is often not a permanent solution for CDH
and can lead to reherniation and require additional surgery; and
   WHEREAS, CDH is diagnosed in utero in less than 50 percent of
cases; and
   WHEREAS, Infants born with CDH have a high mortality rate, ranging
from 20 to 60 percent, depending on the severity of the defect and
interventions available at delivery; and
   WHEREAS, CDH has a rate of occurrence of 1 in every 3,800 live
births worldwide; and
   WHEREAS, CDH affects approximately 1,090 babies each year in the
United States; and
   WHEREAS, CDH has affected more than 700,000 babies worldwide since
2000; and
   WHEREAS, CDH does not discriminate based on race, gender, or
socioeconomic status; and
   WHEREAS, The cause of CDH is unknown; now, therefore, be it
   Resolved by the Senate of the State of California, the Assembly
thereof concurring, That the Legislature designates April 2016 as
California Congenital Diaphragmatic Hernia Awareness Month; and be it
further
   Resolved, That the Legislature encourages that steps should be
taken to: (1) raise awareness of and increase public knowledge about
CDH; (2) inform all Californians about the dangers of CDH, especially
those groups that may be disproportionately affected by CDH or that
have lower survival rates; (3) disseminate information on the
importance of quality neonatal care of CDH patients; (4) promote
quality prenatal care and the use of ultrasounds to detect CDH in
utero; and (5) support research funding of CDH to improve screening
and treatment for CDH, discover the causes of CDH, and develop a cure
for CDH; and be it further
   Resolved, That the Legislature calls upon the people of
California, interest groups, and affected persons to promote
awareness of CDH, take an active role in the fight against this
devastating birth defect, and observe California Congenital
Diaphragmatic Hernia Awareness Month with appropriate ceremonies and
activities; and be it further
   Resolved, That the Secretary of the Senate provide copies of this
resolution to the author for appropriate distribution.