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SENATE CONCURRENT RESOLUTION NO. 9
IN THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF ALASKA
THIRTY-SECOND LEGISLATURE - SECOND SESSION
BY SENATORS KAWASAKI, Gray-Jackson, Costello
Introduced: 2/15/22
Referred: Health and Social Services
A RESOLUTION
1 Proclaiming February 2022 as American Heart Month.
2 BE IT RESOLVED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF ALASKA:
3 WHEREAS cardiovascular disease is the leading cause of death in the United States;
4 and
5 WHEREAS, according to the most recently available data, 4.3 percent of adults in the
6 state, translating to more than 24,000 Alaskans, report being diagnosed with cardiovascular
7 disease, and cardiovascular disease is the second leading cause of death in the state; and
8 WHEREAS, according to the most recently available data, 2.2 percent of adults in the
9 state, or approximately 15,000 Alaskans, have suffered from a stroke, and stroke is the fifth
10 leading cause of death in the state; and
11 WHEREAS approximately 32 percent of cardiovascular disease cases are caused by
12 genetic factors; and
13 WHEREAS the age-adjusted death rate attributable to cardiovascular disease is
14 approximately 217 for every 100,000 people; and
15 WHEREAS cardiovascular disease is the costliest disease in the nation, with direct
16 and indirect costs estimated to be $363,000,000,000 a year; and
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1 WHEREAS cardiovascular disease accounts for one out of three deaths nationwide;
2 and
3 WHEREAS approximately 2,380 Americans die of cardiovascular disease each day,
4 an average of one death every 36 seconds; and
5 WHEREAS nearly 33 percent of deaths caused by cardiovascular disease occur in
6 people under 75 years of age; and
7 WHEREAS, every year, about 805,000 people in the United States have a heart
8 attack; of these, 605,000 are a first heart attack, 200,000 happen to people who have already
9 had a heart attack, and about 1 in 5 is a silent heart attack; and
10 WHEREAS, on average, someone in the United States has a stroke every 40 seconds,
11 someone dies of a stroke every 4 minutes, and there are about 795,000 new or recurrent
12 strokes each year; and
13 WHEREAS 121,500,000, or 47 percent of adults in the United States, have
14 hypertension; and
15 WHEREAS the research is clear that there are preventive strategies, as well as
16 community-based strategies, that can increase survival rates from cardiovascular disease; and
17 WHEREAS the American Heart Association's 2030 impact goal seeks to equitably
18 increase healthy life expectancy from 66 years of age to at least 68 years of age by 2030
19 across the United States; and
20 WHEREAS the American Heart Association encourages citizens to help save lives by
21 calling 911 if symptoms occur, to become trained in cardiopulmonary resuscitation, and to
22 encourage the installation of comprehensive automated external defibrillator programs in their
23 communities; and
24 WHEREAS the American Heart Association is celebrating February 2022 as
25 American Heart Month and promoting education and awareness by encouraging citizens to
26 learn the warning signs of heart attack and stroke;
27 BE IT RESOLVED that the Alaska State Legislature designates February 2022 as
28 American Heart Month in recognition of the importance of the ongoing fight against heart
29 disease; and be it
30 FURTHER RESOLVED that the Alaska State Legislature urges all citizens to
31 recognize the critical importance of tools and skills that increase survival rates from cardiac
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1 arrest and to recognize that, by incorporating those tools and skills into aggressive programs,
2 thousands of lives can be saved each year.
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