07 LC 33
1651
House
Resolution 15
By:
Representatives Channell of the
116th,
Parrish of the
156th,
Royal of the
171st,
Stephens of the
164th,
and Sheldon of the
105th
A
RESOLUTION
Creating
the Joint Study Committee on State Stroke System of Care; and for other
purposes.
WHEREAS,
approximately 700,000 Americans have a new or recurrent stroke each year, and
stroke remains the third leading cause of death in the United States when
considered independently from other cardiovascular diseases; and
WHEREAS,
stroke continues to be a significant cause of morbidity and mortality in the
United States; and
WHEREAS,
stroke also remains a leading cause of serious, long-term disability in the
United States, and major advances have been made during the past several decades
in stroke prevention, treatment, and rehabilitation; and
WHEREAS,
on average, someone dies of a stroke every three minutes; and
WHEREAS,
stroke leads to the death of more than 4,200 citizens of the State of Georgia
each year; and
WHEREAS,
the majority of Americans are not aware of their stroke risk factors, nor are
they aware of the signs and symptoms of an impending stroke; and
WHEREAS,
despite successes in delivering effective new therapies, significant obstacles
remain in ensuring that scientific advances are consistently translated into
clinical practice; and
WHEREAS,
in many instances, these obstacles are related to a fragmentation of stroke
related care caused by an inadequate integration system between the various
facilities, agencies, and professionals that should closely collaborate in
providing stroke care; and
WHEREAS,
there is increased emphasis on improving the components of stroke care,
including recommendations from the Brain Attack Coalition for primary stroke
centers and a formal process provided through the Joint Commission on
Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations (JCAHO) for the certification of
primary stroke centers; and
WHEREAS,
it is critically important to look carefully at how the distinct components can
be better integrated into systems of stroke care; and
WHEREAS,
the fragmented approach to stroke care that exists in most regions of the United
States fails to provide an effective integrated system for stroke prevention,
treatment, and rehabilitation because of inadequate linkages and coordination
among the fundamental components of stroke care; and
WHEREAS,
although individual components of a system of stroke care may be well developed,
these components often operate in isolation; and
WHEREAS,
the problem of access to coordinated stroke care may be exacerbated in rural or
other areas where there is inadequate access to neurological expertise;
and
WHEREAS,
a system of stroke care should coordinate and promote patient access to the full
range of activities and services associated with stroke prevention, treatment,
and rehabilitation, including the following key components: primordial and
primary prevention, community education, notification and response of emergency
medical services, acute stroke treatment, including the hyperacute and emergency
department phases, subacute stroke treatment and secondary prevention,
rehabilitation, and continuous quality improvement (CQI)
activities.
NOW,
THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF GEORGIA that there is
created the Joint Study Committee on State Stroke System of Care to be composed
of five members of the House of Representatives to be appointed by the Speaker
of the House of Representatives and five members of the Senate to be appointed
by the Lieutenant Governor. The Speaker of the House of Representatives shall
designate a member of the House and the Lieutenant Governor shall designate a
member of the Senate who shall serve as cochairpersons of the committee. The
committee shall meet at the call of the cochairpersons in conjunction with the
Georgia American Stroke Association, a division of the American Heart
Association.
BE
IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the committee shall undertake a study of the system of
stroke care in Georgia in regards to primary prevention, notification/response
of EMS, acute treatment of stroke, subacute treatment of stroke, rehabilitation
of stroke patients, and the disparities in recognition of, as well as treatment
in, minority communities. The committee shall hear from experts and key leaders
from these areas and recommend any actions or legislation which the committee
deems necessary or appropriate. The committee may conduct such meetings at such
places and at such times as it may deem necessary or convenient to enable it to
exercise fully and effectively its powers, perform its duties, and accomplish
the objectives and purposes of this resolution. The members of the committee
shall receive the allowances authorized for legislative members of interim
legislative committees but shall receive the same for not more than five days
unless additional days are authorized. The funds necessary to carry out the
provisions of this resolution shall come from the funds appropriated to the
House of Representatives and Senate. In the event the committee makes a report
of its findings and recommendations with suggestions for proposed legislation,
if any, such report shall be made on or before December 31, 2007. The committee
shall stand abolished on December 31, 2007.