Amended in Assembly May 5, 2016

Senate Concurrent Resolution No. 131

Introduced by Senator Beall

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

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April 14, 2016

Senate Concurrent Resolution No. 131—Relative to National Mental Health Awareness Month.

LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL’S DIGEST

SCR 131, as amended, Beall. National Mental Health Awareness Month.

This measure would recognize May 2016 as National Mental Health Awareness Month in California to enhance public awareness of mental illness.

Fiscal committee: no.

WHEREAS, Mental illness is one of the leading causes of
disabilities in the United States, affecting one out of every four
families and victimizing both the person with the illness and those
persons who care for and love the person afflicted; and

WHEREAS, Serious mental illness costs Americans
approximately $193.2 billion in lost earnings per year; and

WHEREAS, The National Institute of Mental Health has
reported that many people suffer from more than one mental
disorder at a given time and that 45 percent of those with any
mental disorder meet criteria for two or more disorders, including
diabetes, cardiovascular disease, HIV/AIDs, and cancer, and the
severity of the mental disorder strongly relates to comorbidity;
and

WHEREAS, Fifty-seven million Americans have a mental
disorder in any given year, but fewer than 40 percent of adults
living with a mental illness, and slightly more than one-half of
youth 8 to 15 years of age, with a mental illness received mental
health services in the last year; and

WHEREAS, Although mental illness impacts all people, many
of those in lower-income communities receive less care, poorer
quality of care, and often lack access to culturally competent care,
thereby resulting in mental health disparities; and

WHEREAS, Some see negative perceptions about mental health
care as a significant factor contributing to limited or nonexistent
access to care, and some common concerns are stigma, culture,
masculinity, exposure to violence, and lack of information and
awareness, among many others; and

WHEREAS, According to the California Reducing Disparities
Project report, being misdiagnosed and given severe mental health
diagnoses can be stigmatizing and can affect the person’s
self-esteem, which, in turn, can discourage the person from seeking
help; and

WHEREAS, The three major brain diseases, schizophrenia,
bipolar disorder, and depression, adversely affect the economy,
contribute to the rise of incarceration rates, and erode the quality
of life for patients and their loved ones; and

WHEREAS, Nearly two-thirds of all people with a diagnosable
mental illness do not receive mental health treatment due to stigma,
lack of community-based resources, inadequate diagnosis, or no
diagnosis; and

WHEREAS, An estimated 70 percent of all youth in the juvenile
justice system have at least one mental health condition, and at
least 20 percent live with severe mental illness that is usually
undiagnosed, misdiagnosed, untreated, or ineffectively treated,
thus leaving those detained in the juvenile justice system in a
vulnerable condition; and

WHEREAS, There is a need to improve public awareness of
mental illness and to strengthen local and national awareness of
brain diseases, so that all those with mental illness may receive
adequate and appropriate treatment that will result in their
becoming fully functioning members of society; and

WHEREAS, Access to mental health treatment and services is
of paramount importance; and

WHEREAS, There is a need to encourage primary care
physicians to offer screenings, to partner with mental health care
providers, to seek appropriate referrals to specialists, and to
encourage timely and accurate diagnoses of mental disorders; and

WHEREAS, The Legislature wishes to enhance public
awareness of mental illness, now, therefore, be it

Resolved by the Senate of the State of California, the Assembly
thereof concurring, That the Legislature of the State of California
hereby recognizes May 2016 as National Mental Health Awareness
Month in California to enhance public awareness of mental illness;
and be it further

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