BILL NUMBER: ACR 72ENROLLED BILL TEXT ADOPTED IN SENATE JULY 9, 2009 ADOPTED IN ASSEMBLY JUNE 24, 2009 INTRODUCED BY Assembly Member Huffman MAY 5, 2009 Relative to Pain Awareness Month. LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST ACR 72, Huffman. Pain Awareness Month. This measure would recognize September 2009 as Pain Awareness Month and call upon all Californians to observe that month by learning how to improve the quality of life of Californians suffering from pain. WHEREAS, More than 75 million Americans live with chronic pain caused by various diseases or disorders, and each year, nearly 25 million Americans suffer with acute pain; and WHEREAS, Though medical knowledge and technology exist to relieve or greatly ease pain, most pain is untreated, undertreated, or improperly treated, and many health care professionals are still unaware of how to effectively treat pain; and WHEREAS, People who suffer from chronic pain are often stigmatized and marginalized and are often not informed about the right to effective pain assessment and management, and most people with pain, including those at the end of life, get little or no relief; and WHEREAS, The California-based Partners for Understanding Pain is a growing coalition of pain sufferers, physicians, nurses, social workers, pharmacists, therapists, civic leaders, nonprofit organizations, and health care businesses whose mission is to improve the quality of life for people in California experiencing pain; and WHEREAS, It is the collective mission of this movement to provide practical information for people with pain, inform health care professionals about pain management, and serve as an advocate for people experiencing pain; now, therefore, be it Resolved by the Assembly of the State of California, the Senate thereof concurring, That the Legislature recognizes the month of September 2009 as Pain Awareness Month, and calls upon all Californians to observe this month by participating in appropriate ceremonies and activities and by learning how to improve the quality of life for people in California suffering from pain; and be it further Resolved, That the Chief Clerk of the Assembly transmit copies of this resolution to the author for appropriate distribution.