HR 9013

1	House Resolution
2	A resolution designating May 2008 as "Amyotrophic Lateral
3	Sclerosis Awareness Month" in the State of Florida.
4
5	WHEREAS, Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS), better known
6	as Lou Gehrig's Disease, is a progressive neurodegenerative
7	disease that affects nerve cells in the brain and spinal cord,
8	and
9	WHEREAS, the early symptoms of ALS include weakness of the
10	skeletal muscles, especially involving the arms and legs, and
11	difficulty in swallowing, talking, and breathing, and
12	WHEREAS, ALS eventually causes muscles to atrophy, and the
13	patient becomes a functional quadriplegic, and
14	WHEREAS, ALS does not affect a patient's mental capacity;
15	therefore, the patient remains alert and aware of his or her
16	loss of motor functions and the inevitability of continued
17	deterioration and death, and
18	WHEREAS, on average, patients diagnosed with ALS survive
19	only three to five years after the diagnosis, and
20	WHEREAS, research indicates that military veterans are at
21	least 50 percent more likely to develop ALS than those who have
22	not served in the military, and
23	WHEREAS, ALS has no known cause, means of prevention, or
24	cure, and
25	WHEREAS, the designation of an "Amyotrophic Lateral
26	Sclerosis Awareness Month" will increase awareness regarding the
27	circumstances of ALS patients and the terrible impact this
28	disease has not only on the patient but on the patient's family
29	and the larger community and will support the goals of
30	biomedical research on ALS, which are to find the cause or
31	causes of ALS, understand the mechanisms involved in the
32	progression of the disease, and develop effective treatment,
33	NOW, THEREFORE,
34
35	Be It Resolved by the House of Representatives of the State of
36	Florida:
37
38	That May 2008 is designated as "Amyotrophic Lateral
39	Sclerosis Awareness Month" in the State of Florida.

CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions.