Florida Senate - 2021 (NP) SR 1692



By Senator Torres





15-01769-21 20211692__
1 Senate Resolution
2 A resolution recognizing June 27, 2021, and each June
3 27 thereafter, as “Posttraumatic Stress Injury
4 Awareness Day” and each June as “Posttraumatic Stress
5 Injury Awareness Month” in Florida.
6
7 WHEREAS, all citizens of the United States possess the
8 basic human right to the preservation of personal dignity and
9 deserve the investment of every possible resource to ensure
10 their lasting physical, mental, and emotional well-being, and
11 WHEREAS, the diagnosis known as posttraumatic stress
12 disorder (PTSD) was initially formulated in 1980 by the American
13 Psychiatric Association to more accurately assess and assist
14 veterans who had endured severe combat stress in Vietnam, and
15 WHEREAS, combat stress is an invisible wound that has
16 historically been unjustly portrayed as a mental illness caused
17 by a preexisting flaw of character or ability, and the term
18 “disorder” carries a stigma that perpetuates this misconception,
19 and
20 WHEREAS, it has been shown though electromagnetic imaging
21 that these invisible wounds can cause physical changes to the
22 brain which more accurately describe an injury than a disorder,
23 and
24 WHEREAS, referring to invisible wounds as a disorder can
25 discourage the injured from seeking proper and timely medical
26 treatment, and
27 WHEREAS, posttraumatic stress injury can occur following
28 exposure to extremely traumatic events other than combat, such
29 as, but not exclusive to, interpersonal violence, life
30 threatening accidents, and natural disasters, and
31 WHEREAS, persons with a posttraumatic stress injury that
32 satisfies criteria A through H of the diagnosis for PTSD in the
33 Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Fifth
34 Edition, deserve disability compensation equal to that allowed
35 for PTSD under the law, and
36 WHEREAS, while all Americans who have suffered
37 posttraumatic stress injuries are deserving of our compassion
38 and consideration, those brave men and women of the United
39 States Armed Forces who have suffered these wounds in
40 operational action against an enemy of the United States also
41 deserve clear and prominent recognition, and
42 WHEREAS, timely and appropriate treatment of posttraumatic
43 stress injury can diminish complications and avert suicides,
44 NOW, THEREFORE,
45
46 Be It Resolved by the Senate of the State of Florida:
47
48 That June 27, 2021, and each June 27 thereafter, is
49 recognized as “Posttraumatic Stress Injury Awareness Day,” and
50 each June is recognized as “Posttraumatic Stress Injury
51 Awareness Month” in Florida.
52 BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Departments of Health,
53 Military Affairs, and Veterans’ Affairs are encouraged to
54 continue their efforts to educate those who have experienced
55 interpersonal violence, life-threatening accidents, and natural
56 disasters and their families, as well as the general public,
57 about the causes, symptoms, and treatment of posttraumatic
58 stress injury.