BILL NUMBER: ACR 105 AMENDED
BILL TEXT
AMENDED IN SENATE APRIL 12, 2010
AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY MARCH 9, 2010
INTRODUCED BY Assembly Member Nava
(Coauthors: Assembly Members Ammiano, Block, Blumenfield,
Brownley, Carter, Davis, De Leon, Eng, Fletcher, Gaines,
Hall, Huffman, Jones, Lieu, Bonnie Lowenthal, Monning, V. Manuel
Perez, Portantino, Salas, Solorio, and Audra Strickland)
(Coauthors: Senators Aanestad, Correa,
Cox, Hancock, Leno, and Price)
JANUARY 20, 2010
Relative to Perinatal Depression Awareness Month.
LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST
ACR 105, as amended, Nava. Perinatal Depression Awareness Month.
This measure would proclaim the month of May, each year, as
Perinatal Depression Awareness Month in California, and would request
the State Department of Health Care Services, the State Department
of Public Health, the State Department of Mental Health, First 5
California, the American College of Obstetricians and
Gynecologists, Postpartum Support International, and other
stakeholders to work together to explore ways to improve women's
access to mental health care at the state and local levels, to
facilitate increased awareness and education about perinatal
depression , clinically referred to as perinatal mood and
anxiety disorders , to explore and encourage the use of
prenatal screening tools, and to improve the availability of
effective treatment and community support services.
Fiscal committee: no.
WHEREAS, Maternal health and, more specifically, the mental health
of women before, during, and after childbirth is an issue of great
concern to women and their families , their
families, and their physicians and is, therefore, of interest
to the Legislature; and
WHEREAS, Perinatal depression and other mood disorders are serious
and debilitating, but treatable disorders that affect childbearing
women and their families; and
WHEREAS, Perinatal depression and other mood disorders related to
pregnancy and childbirth can take many forms, including depression,
anxiety, panic disorder, obsessive-compulsive disorder, and
psychosis, with onset occurring during pregnancy and after childbirth
and, therefore, it is appropriate to use the broader, more
accurate term of "perinatal depression" to describe the many levels
and degrees of severity of these afflictions; and
clinically referred to as "perinatal mood and anxiety disorders" but
commonly referred to as "perinatal depression"; and
WHEREAS, These afflictions can have potentially serious
repercussions upon the physical, emotional, social, and physical
health of mothers, fathers, infants, children, and
families; and
WHEREAS, It is critical that there is heightened awareness and
increased education among all Californians as to the incidence of
perinatal depression; that it affects all categories of women and
teenage girls regardless of their age, race, or income level; that it
can have a profound impact on the family and significantly
contribute to adverse developmental and behavioral outcomes and
attachment disorders in the young children of affected women; and
that it is highly treatable with therapeutic intervention,
community-based supportive services, and additionally, where
appropriate, medication; and
WHEREAS, Studies show that up to 80 percent of pregnant and
postpartum women around the world experience the "baby blues," which
is expressed as frequent and prolonged crying, anxiety, irritability,
poor sleep, quick mood changes, and a sense of vulnerability. The
onset of the "baby blues" usually occurs within three days of birth,
may continue for a few weeks, and does not normally require clinical
treatment, but is, instead, instead is
alleviated by emotional and community-based supportive services, and
practical assistance with the baby; and
WHEREAS, Between 10 and 20 percent of pregnant and new mothers are
affected by perinatal depression and related mood disorders, and may
experience symptoms of depressed mood, inability to find pleasure in
usually engaging activities, sleep disturbances, diminished
concentration, appetite and weight loss, anxiety and panic attacks,
feelings of guilt and worthlessness, suicidal thoughts, and fears
about hurting the baby; and
WHEREAS, One to two out of every 1,000 new mothers can experience
postpartum psychosis, which may begin with manic states,
hyperactivity, an inability to sleep, and avoidance of the baby, and
may lead to delusions, hallucinations, incoherence, and thoughts of
harming the child or themselves and the inability to suppress these
thoughts resulting in bodily harm to the mother, infant, or both; and
WHEREAS, All factors contributing to perinatal depression and
related mood disorders are not fully understood or recognized, but it
is believed that these disorders are caused by physiological factors
, such as hormone levels, and can be exacerbated
by such external risk factors as marital problems, sleep deprivation,
lack of social support, poverty, and preexisting mental illnesses;
and
WHEREAS, Mental illness related to childbearing is often
overlooked and is heavily stigmatized because expectant and new
mothers are expected to be happy, and mothers who are suffering from
a form of these disorders feel confused, ashamed, and isolated; and
WHEREAS, According to the American College of Obstetricians and
Gynecologists (ACOG), a strong social support network ,
including hotlines, Internet Web site resources, including Postpartum
Support International, respite care, community-based support,
including faith-based supportive services, home visitation programs,
and informed and accessible resources, and referrals that accommodate
all, regardless of ability to pay and that are culturally competent,
can greatly reduce the intensity and duration of symptoms
of perinatal depression and can promote healing and recovery.
This support can take the form of hotlines, Internet Web sites,
community-based support, home visitation, referral services, and
respite care. Services should be available regardless of
ability to pay, and services should be culturally and linguistically
appropriate. Social and community-based support includes
removing stigma as a barrier to accessing help, empathy, information,
and practical help that leads women and their families to obtain
effective treatment and support services and creates an environment
in which women learn that they are not alone, they are not to blame,
and they will get better; and
WHEREAS, The proposed federal Melanie Blocker Stokes
MOTHERS Act would direct Provisions of the proposed
federal Melanie Blocker Stokes MOTHERS Act made law by the federal
Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act directs the United
States Secretary of Health and Human Services , the National
Institutes of Health, including and the
National Institute of Mental Health , to expand
and intensify research and related activities with respect to
postpartum depression and postpartum psychosis and would
direct directs the Secretary of Health and Human
Services to make grants to provide for projects for the
establishment, operation, and coordination of effective and
cost-efficient systems for the delivery of essential services to
individuals with perinatal depression or postpartum psychosis and
their families; and
WHEREAS, The highly publicized tragic deaths of children at the
hands of their mothers who suffered from postpartum psychosis have
emphasized the need for more awareness of the illness; improved
referral processes; improved access to therapeutic intervention,
including medication, and other supportive services; more research
into perinatal depression and related mood
disorders, including postpartum psychosis and other perinatal
mood and anxiety disorders ; and a greater understanding of how
the justice system interacts with mothers who suffer from postpartum
psychosis and are accused of a crime; and
WHEREAS, Many women are not adequately informed about, screened
for, and treated for perinatal depression because they are uninsured,
underinsured, lack access to comprehensive health care, or face
cultural and linguistic barriers; and
WHEREAS, Many at-risk affected women
may not get help because of the stigma associated with mental
illness, lack of information about perinatal depression and related
mood disorders as part of their overall reproductive health care;
because there is limited knowledge; and nonuse
limited use of screening and assessment tools; and because
they are unaware of services; support and treatment for perinatal
depression, such as medication, therapeutic interventions, including
counseling, support groups, and community-based supportive services;
and
WHEREAS, Lack of available services due to inadequate funding
for comprehensive medical care, and specifically mental health
services, creates an environment where care may not be readily
available, and it is particularly important to bring awareness to
this problem so that women and their families are able to seek out
help; and
WHEREAS, Increased education and awareness, improved access to
health care, proper universal use of perinatal
screening tools, and prioritizing
understanding of perinatal depression by all service providers
and community support systems who interface with pregnant and new
mothers are all critical factors in identifying mothers-to-be who are
at risk, and providing prompt diagnosis, treatment, and proper
community-based supportive services that can effectively work
together to facilitate recovery; and
WHEREAS, There is ample opportunity are
many opportunities for the diverse health care community,
including obstetricians and gynecologists, pediatricians,
psychologists, psychiatrists, social workers, case managers, nurses,
childbirth educators, nurse midwives, nurse practitioners, doulas,
health educators, breast-feeding instructors, and community
advocates, to make women aware of perinatal depression and related
mood disorders and identify at-risk women during prenatal visits,
home visitation sessions, prepared childbirth classes, labor and
delivery, breast-feeding classes, postpartum well-baby checkups, and
parenting classes; and
WHEREAS, It behooves hospitals, health plans, and
insurance companies to establish
companies, and public programs to pay for, establish, and
encourage these policies of diagnosis, identification, and referral
to informed treatment and supportive services; now, therefore, be it
Resolved by the Assembly of the State of California, the Senate
thereof concurring, That the State of California hereby proclaims the
month of May, each year, as Perinatal Depression Awareness Month in
California; and be it further
Resolved, That the State Department of Health Care Services, State
Department of Public Health, the State Department of Mental Health,
First 5 California, the American College of Obstetricians and
Gynecologists, Postpartum Support International, and other
motivated stakeholders are requested to work together to explore ways
to improve women's access to mental health care at the state and
local levels, to facilitate increased awareness and education about
perinatal depression and related mood disorders, to explore
and encourage the implementation of universal use of prenatal
treatment and support services; and be it further ,
clinically referred to as perinatal mood and anxiety
disorders; and be it further
Resolved, That the Chief Clerk of the Assembly transmit copies of
this resolution to the President of the United States and to
each Senator and Representative from California in the Congress of
the United States. author for appropriate
distribution.