SRES141MAY13

TheWeekInCongress.com

Week Ending May 13, 2005

Senate Resolution 141 designating September 9, 2005 as “National Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder Awareness Day.”

BRIEF

Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder replaces Fetal Alcohol Syndrome because the former better expresses the wide range of damage that drinking alcohol during pregnancy can do to a fetus.

The syndrome is the leading cause of mental retardation in the world, is 100 percent preventable and is found to one degree or another in one-in-100 infants.

Socially the syndrome can include “disabilities, school failure, juvenile delinquency, homelessness, unemployment, mental illness, and crime,” the preamble says.

Resolution sponsor Sen. Murkowski (R-AK) explained how alcohol damages the fetus; “When a pregnant woman drinks, the alcohol crosses the placenta into the fetal blood system. Thus, alcohol reaches the fetus, its developing tissues and organs. This is how brain damage occurs, which in turn can lead to mental retardation, social and emotional problems, learning disabilities and other problems.”

To broadcast the message, the founder of the designated “Day”, Bonnie Buxton of Toronto, Canada, saw the wisdom in the logo, “the ninth hour of the ninth day of the ninth month of the year” as a reminder “that during the 9 months of pregnancy a woman should not consume alcohol . . .”

Sponsor: Senator Lisa Murkowski (R-AK)

Vote: Passed Senate by Unanimous Consent.

Cost to the taxpayers: No discernible cost.

MORE INFORMATION

S. Res. 141

Whereas the term ``fetal alcohol spectrum disorders'' includes a broader range of conditions and therefore has replaced the term ``fetal alcohol syndrome'' as the umbrella term describing the range of effects that can occur in an individual whose mother drank alcohol during pregnancy;

Whereas fetal alcohol spectrum disorders are the leading cause of mental retardation in western civilization, including the United States, and are 100 percent preventable;

Whereas fetal alcohol spectrum disorders are a major cause of numerous social disorders, including learning disabilities, school failure, juvenile delinquency, homelessness, unemployment, mental illness, and crime;

Whereas the incidence rate of fetal alcohol syndrome is estimated at 1 out of 500 live births and the incidence rate of fetal alcohol spectrum disorders is estimated at 1 out of every 100 live births;

Whereas the economic cost of fetal alcohol syndrome alone to the Nation was $5,400,000,000 in 2003 and it is estimated that each individual with fetal alcohol syndrome will cost United States taxpayers between $1,500,000 and $3,000,000 in his or her lifetime;

Whereas in February 1999, a small group of parents of children who suffer from fetal alcohol spectrum disorders came together with the hope that in 1 magic moment the world could be made aware of the devastating consequences of alcohol consumption during pregnancy;

Whereas the first International Fetal Alcohol Syndrome Awareness Day was observed on September 9, 1999;

Whereas Bonnie Buxton of Toronto, Canada, the co-founder of the first International Fetal Alcohol Syndrome Awareness Day, asked ``What if . . . a world full of FAS/E [Fetal Alcohol Syndrome/Effect] parents all got together on the ninth hour of the ninth day of the ninth month of the year and asked the world to remember that during the 9 months of pregnancy a woman should not consume alcohol . . . would the rest of the world listen?''; and

Whereas on the ninth day of the ninth month of each year since 1999, communities around the world have observed International Fetal Alcohol Syndrome Awareness Day: Now, therefore, be it

Resolved, That the Senate--

(1) designates September 9, 2005, as ``National Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorders Awareness Day''; and

(2) calls upon the people of the United States to--

(A) observe National Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorders Awareness Day with appropriate ceremonies to--

(i) promote awareness of the effects of prenatal exposure to alcohol;

(ii) increase compassion for individuals affected by prenatal exposure to alcohol;

(iii) minimize further effects of prenatal exposure to alcohol; and

(iv) ensure healthier communities across the United States; and

(B) observe a moment of reflection on the ninth hour of September 9, 2005, to remember that during the 9 months of pregnancy a woman should not consume alcohol.

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