BILL NUMBER: SCR 13CHAPTERED BILL TEXT RESOLUTION CHAPTER 22 FILED WITH SECRETARY OF STATE APRIL 14, 2015 ADOPTED IN SENATE FEBRUARY 5, 2015 ADOPTED IN ASSEMBLY APRIL 9, 2015 AMENDED IN SENATE JANUARY 29, 2015 INTRODUCED BY Senator Jackson (Coauthor: Assembly Member Cristina Garcia) JANUARY 22, 2015 Relative to American Heart Month and Wear Red Day in California. LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST SCR 13, Jackson. American Heart Month and Wear Red Day in California. This measure would recognize the month of February 2015 as American Heart Month in California and February 6, 2015, as Wear Red Day in California in order to raise awareness of the importance of the ongoing fight against heart disease and stroke. WHEREAS, Heart disease is the number one killer of women, yet 80 percent of cardiac events can be prevented; and WHEREAS, Cardiovascular disease is the cause of death of one in three women who die each year, approximately one woman every minute; and WHEREAS, The American Heart Association is celebrating February 2015 as American Heart Month and promoting education and awareness by encouraging citizens to learn the warning signs of heart attack and stroke; and WHEREAS, The American Heart Association's 2020 impact goal seeks to improve the cardiovascular health of all Americans by 20 percent while reducing deaths from cardiovascular disease and stroke by 20 percent through research, population- and community-level interventions, and public health and policy measures; and WHEREAS, An estimated 44 million women in the United States are affected by cardiovascular disease; and WHEREAS, Ninety percent of women have one or more risk factors for developing heart disease, yet only one in five American women believe that heart disease is her greatest health threat; and WHEREAS, Since 1984, more women than men have died each year from heart disease; and WHEREAS, Women comprise only 24 percent of participants in all heart-disease-related studies; and WHEREAS, Women are less likely to call 911 for themselves when experiencing symptoms of a heart attack than they are if someone else were having a heart attack; and WHEREAS, Only 43 percent of African American women and only 44 percent of Hispanic women know that heart disease is their greatest health risk, compared with 60 percent of Caucasian women; and WHEREAS, According to the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, heart disease and stroke account for 31.7 percent of all female deaths in California; and WHEREAS, Research conducted by the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in 2010 found that, on average, almost 100 women die from heart disease and stroke in California each day; and WHEREAS, Women involved with the American Heart Association's Go Red For Women movement live healthier lives. Nearly 90 percent have made at least one healthy behavior change; and WHEREAS, Go Red For Women is asking all Americans to Go Red by wearing red and speaking red. Get your numbers: ask your doctor to check your blood pressure and cholesterol. Own your lifestyle: stop smoking, lose weight, exercise, and eat healthy. Realize your risk: educate your family, make healthy food choices for you and your family, and teach your kids the importance of staying active. Don't be silent: tell all women you know that heart disease is their number one killer; now, therefore, be it Resolved by the Senate of the State of California, the Assembly thereof concurring, That the Legislature recognizes the month of February 2015 as American Heart Month in California in order to raise awareness of the importance of the ongoing fight against heart disease and stroke; and be it further Resolved, That the Legislature recognizes February 6, 2015, as Wear Red Day in California, and urges all citizens to show their support of women and the fight against heart disease by commemorating this day by wearing the color red; and be it further Resolved, That the Legislature urges public support for Go Red For Women events planned in California during American Heart Month; and be it further Resolved, That the Secretary of the Senate transmit copies of this resolution to the author for appropriate distribution.