A resolution designating October 2019 as "National Health Literacy Month".

III 116TH CONGRESS 1ST SESSION S. RES. 396 Designating October 2019 as ‘‘National Health Literacy Month’’. IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES OCTOBER 31, 2019 Mr. MURPHY (for himself, Mrs. HYDE-SMITH, Mr. VAN HOLLEN, and Mr. SCOTT of South Carolina) submitted the following resolution; which was referred to the Committee on the Judiciary NOVEMBER 6, 2019 Committee discharged; considered and agreed to RESOLUTION Designating October 2019 as ‘‘National Health Literacy Month’’. Whereas health literacy is the degree to which individuals can obtain and understand basic health information in order to make informed health decisions; Whereas, according to the latest national assessment of health literacy, a majority of adults have intermediate health literacy, while more than 75,000,000 adults have basic or below basic health literacy; Whereas language and cultural differences can affect health literacy and thereby lower effective health communication between providers and patients; VerDate Sep 11 2014 21:58 Nov 06, 2019 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6300 E:\BILLS\SR396.ATS SR396 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 2 SRES 396 ATS Whereas, according to the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality, low health literacy is associated with higher rates of emergency care use, increased hospitalizations, and, among seniors, higher mortality; Whereas the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality also found that low health literacy can be associated with a lack of medication adherence; Whereas experts estimate that the annual cost of low health literacy to the United States economy is between $106,000,000,000 and $238,000,000,000; Whereas mental health literacy may lead to better outcomes for individuals with mental disorders, particularly individ- uals with suicidal ideation, either by facilitating early help-seeking by those individuals or helping others iden- tify early signs of mental disorders and seek help on be- half of those individuals; Whereas health literacy can assist in preventing disease and illness, increasing life expectancy, improving patient care and outcomes, and reducing health care costs; Whereas, in 2010, the Department of Health and Human Services issued a National Action Plan to Improve Health Literacy that establishes 7 goals; and Whereas advocacy organizations have recognized the month of October as ‘‘National Health Literacy Month’’ to in- crease awareness about the importance of making health information easy to understand: Now, therefore, be it Resolved, That the Senate— 1 (1) designates October 2019 as ‘‘National 2 Health Literacy Month’’; 3 VerDate Sep 11 2014 21:58 Nov 06, 2019 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\SR396.ATS SR396 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 3 SRES 396 ATS (2) encourages individuals to assess and im- 1 prove their health knowledge and literacy; 2 (3) recommends that health care providers de- 3 liver health services in a clear and comprehensive 4 manner; and 5 (4) encourages all interested parties to promote 6 the importance of health literacy. 7 Æ VerDate Sep 11 2014 21:58 Nov 06, 2019 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6301 E:\BILLS\SR396.ATS SR396 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS