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   Mr. REID submitted the following resolution; which was referred to the Committee on the Judiciary:

   S. Res. 99

   Whereas the 105th Congress, in Senate Resolution 84 and House Resolution 212, recognized suicide as a national problem and suicide prevention as a national priority;

   Whereas the Surgeon General has publicly recognized suicide as a public health problem;

   Whereas the resolutions of the 105th Congress called for a collaboration between public and private organizations and individuals concerned with suicide;

   Whereas in the United States, more than 30,000 people take their own lives each year;

   Whereas suicide is the 8th leading cause of death in the United States and the 3rd major cause of death among young people aged 15 through 19;

   Whereas the suicide rate among young people has more than tripled in the last 4 decades, a fact that is a tragedy in itself and a source of devastation to millions of family members and loved ones;

   Whereas every year in the United States, 200,000 people become suicide survivors (people that have lost a loved one to suicide), and there are approximately 8,000,000 suicide survivors in the United States today;

   Whereas society still needlessly stigmatizes both the people that take their own lives and suicide survivors;

   Whereas there is a need for greater outreach to suicide survivors because, all too often, they are left alone to grieve;

   Whereas suicide survivors are often helped to rebuild their lives through a network of support with fellow survivors;

   Whereas suicide survivors play an essential role in educating communities about the risks of suicide and the need to develop suicide prevention strategies; and

   Whereas suicide survivors contribute to suicide prevention research by providing essential information about the environmental and genetic backgrounds of the deceased: Now, therefore, be it

    Resolved,That the Senate--

    (1)(A) designates November 20, 1999, as ``National Survivors for Prevention of Suicide Day''; and

    (B) requests that the President issue a proclamation calling on Federal, State, and local administrators and the people of the United States to observe the day with appropriate programs, ceremonies, and activities;

    (2) encourages the involvement of suicide survivors in healing activities and prevention programs;

    (3) acknowledges that suicide survivors face distinct obstacles in their grieving;

    (4) recognizes that suicide survivors can be a source of support and strength to each other;

    (5) recognizes that suicide survivors have played a leading role in organizations dedicated to reducing suicide through research, education, and treatment programs; and

    (6) acknowledges the efforts of suicide survivors in their prevention, education, and advocacy activities to eliminate stigma and to reduce the incidence of suicide.

   Mr. REID. Mr. President, I rise today to submit a Senate resolution which would designate November 20, 1999 as ``National Survivors for Prevention of Suicide Day.'' Let me begin by defining the term survivor. This refers to anyone who has lost a loved one to suicide. As such, having lost my father to suicide in 1972, I am viewed as a survivor in the suicide prevention community. Nationally, more than 30,000 people take their own lives each year in our nation. Suicide is the eighth leading cause of death in the United States and the third major cause of death among people aged 15-19.

   The suicide rate among young people has more than tripled in the last four decades. Every year 200,000 people become survivors due to this tragic loss of life. We arrive at this number by concluding that for each suicide, seven other lives are changed forever because of the death. As you can imagine, this is a conservative estimate by all accounts. Today in our country, nearly 8,000,000 suicide survivors go on with their lives, many of them grieving in a very private way. This is because there still remains in our nation a stigma towards those who take their own life as well as those who are left behind to cope with the suicide of a loved one. I can't begin to tell you how many survivors have written me expressing the shame and guilt they feel about their loved ones' suicide, many of whom are still unable to deal honestly with the tragic conditions which ultimately led to someone they love taking their own life.

   In the 105th Congress, both the House and Senate took very courageous steps to address the public health challenge of suicide by passing Senate Resolution 84 and House Resolution 212. Essentially, these resolutions recognized suicide as a national problem warranting a national solution. The resolutions also called for the development of a national strategy to address and reduce the incidence of outside.

   I am proud to have been the sponsor of Senate Resolution 84 and proud of my colleagues for having lent their support to ensure its passage. I also commend Representative JOHN LEWIS for his leadership in the House and to all the members who provided their support to ensure its passage in the closing days of the last session. We cannot however, stop here. We must continue to show our compassion and assert leadership to take the necessary steps to mobilize our national response for suicide prevention.

   Recently, there has been a fervor of activity and collaboration in both the federal and private sectors around suicide prevention. On the federal level, our Surgeon General, Dr. David Satcher has included the topic of suicide prevention on his public health agenda. In addition to Dr. Satcher's efforts, staff at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the National Institute of Mental Health and the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration have focussed increased effort on the issue of suicide prevention. In the private sector, groups such as the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention, the American Association of Suicidology and the Suicide Prevention Advocacy Network have worked together to increase national awareness

   as well. There are countless others who, on a daily basis, make their commitment to assist in finding solutions to this national dilemma. The self-help groups, clinicians, researchers, and grass roots advocates are all making a vital difference.

   In the near future, I hope to see the national strategy that has been developed by many who stepped to the plate, as called for in Senate Resolution 84 and House Resolution 212, to chart a course for our national effort. I hope to see hearings in the Senate soon on this issue and hope we will look at the recommendations seriously and lend our support to making this report one that does more than collect dust on a shelf, but instead a report that charts the course we must pursue to reduce the incidence of suicide in America and to convey our national resolve.

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   This year we will witness two events which deserve our recognition and support. On June 7, 1999 the White House will hold a White House Conference on Mental Health and later this year the Surgeon General will issue his report on mental health. The time has come when we must recognize that mental disorders are illnesses that can be treated effectively. We know that 90 percent of suicide victims have suffered from a mental disorder. Therefore, we must send a clear and unmistakable message that those who suffer should be encouraged to seek assistance and restore themselves to a healthy state of being. The Mental Health Parity legislation introduced by my good friends Senator PETE DOMENICI and Senator PAUL WELLSTONE is a step in the right direction. Their leadership on this issue has my full support and respect. There should be no barrier for individuals to obtaining help for whatever illness, including mental illness, if there is effective treatment available to assist them. We must remove the stigma and have the courage to show acceptance.

   As you can see Mr. President, there is much that has been done but still much we in Congress can do to advance this agenda. Today, it is my intent to recognize the 8,000,000 survivors who all are at various stages of healing in addressing the loss of their loved one to suicide. I ask you to support me in turning their grief into hope, a hope that with acceptance and understanding, can lead our nation effectively addressing this very preventable public health challenge.

   Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that additional material be printed in the RECORD.

   There being no objection, the material was ordered to be printed in the RECORD, as follows:

   AMERICAN FOUNDATION FOR

   SUICIDE PREVENTION,

   May 5, 1999.
Senator HARRY REID,
Hart Senate Office Building,
Washington, DC.

   DEAR SENATOR REID: The American Foundation for Suicide Prevention supports the proposed Senate Resolution calling for a National Survivors for Prevention of Suicide Day. We believe this resolution will build on the momentum started by the 105th Congress in Senate Resolution 84 and House Resolution 212, and will further the suicide prevention goals articulated in these earlier resolutions.

   Specifically, the proposed Survivors for Prevention Resolution will be instrumental in recognizing the involvement of people who have lost a loved one to suicide in prevention activities. It will also encourage them to come forward, break the silence and join with other survivors as a way to promote their healing.

   As you know, our Foundation is dedicated to seeing that conferences for family members and friends who have lost someone to suicide are held in many more communities. Working together with other private organizations and public agencies, we will use this resolution to help develop local survivor conferences in cities across the country.

   Please know AFSP deeply appreciates the leadership you are providing in Congress on this major public health problem and is grateful for your sponsorship of Senate Resolution 84 in the 105th Congress. We are equally grateful for your willingness to sponsor this Survivors for Prevention Resolution.

   On behalf of millions of survivors who want to prevent others from experiencing a similar loss, as well as people throughout our country concerned about the risk of suicide, thank you.

   Sincerely,

   Robert Gebbia,
Executive Director.

--

   AAS, AMERICAN ASSOCIATION

   OF SUICIDOLOGY,

   May 6, 1999.
Senator HARRY REID,
Hart Senate Office Building, Washington, DC.

   DEAR SENATOR REID: With great enthusiasm the American Association of Suicidology (AAS) supports the proposed Senate Resolution designating November 20, 1999 as ``National Survivors for Prevention of Suicide Day.'' We, furthermore, applaud your continuing commitment to both suicide prevention and the needs of survivors.

   Your proposal extends the success initiated by you in passage of Senate Resolution 84 in making suicide prevention a national priority. The subsequent passage of HR 212 and the Surgeon Generals' affirmation of suicide prevention as a public health goal are direct sequelae of your earlier efforts; and the consequence of these efforts will, undoubtedly promote the welfare of all our citizens.

   The AAS has embraced suicide prevention as part of our mission and survivors as integral to accomplishing that mission. Our annual Healing After Suicide Conference has provided opportunities for thousands of survivors to learn from and assuage each other's often unbearable pain, to educate care givers to better understand the suicidal person, and to create new models to help the healing process. Our Directory of Survivors of Suicide Support Groups has been accessed by thousands of new survivors needing to find help. Our Survivor Division and newsletter Surviving Suicide continue to network and service the needs of survivors.

   With the advocacy of our survivor members and your continued leadership, we are increasingly hopeful that we can significantly impact the incidence of suicide in this country and ensure the health of generations to come.

   Sincerely,

--

   SUICIDE PREVENTION

   ADVOCACY NETWORK,

   May 10, 1999.
Hon. HARRY REID,
U.S. Senate,
Washington, DC.

   DEAR SENATOR REID: SPAN supports the Senate Resolution designating November 20, 1999 as ``National Survivors for Prevention of Suicide Day'' that you have prepared. Further, SPAN salutes you for this contribution to the well being, growth and involvement of survivors of suicide in the national effort to reduce the incidence of suicide!

   It is just over two years since you introduced to the Senate of the 105th Congress, Senate Resolution 84 that recognized suicide as a national problem and suicide prevention as a national priority. The Proposed Senate Resolution is therefore particularly timely now as it brings before the Senate a reminder of their past action. It spotlights the need for continuing Senate support and identifies a powerful and potentially huge national resource for the collaborative effort to reduce the incidence of suicide.

   The last paragraph of the resolution will be most helpful to all survivors of suicide. It identifies the part that each individual survivor can play in the national effort to reduce the incidence of suicide and confirms that, together we can make a big difference.

   Thanks Senator Reid for your ongoing national leadership for efforts to develop, implement and evaluate a proven, effective national suicide prevention strategy. The proposed resolution is another example of your dedication to this effort. Thank you!

   Sincerely,
GERALD H. (JERRY) WEYRAUCH.

--

   NAMI,

   May 11, 1999.
Hon. HARRY REID,
U.S. Senate,
Hart Office Building, Washington, DC

   DEAR SENATOR REID: On behalf of the 208,000 members and 1,200 affiliates of the National Alliance for the Mentally Ill (NAMI), I am writing to express NAMI's strong support for your resolution to designate November 20, 1999 as ``National Survivors for Prevention of Suicide Day'', and to thank you for recognizing suicide as a national problem and suicide prevention as a national priority. More than 30,000 Americans commit suicide annually, and while we do not always understand why some choose suicide, we do know that it is all too often associated with severe mental illnesses, particularly major depression. Death by suicide is unfortunately one of the most dire risks of untreated mental illness.

   Sadly, more than 10 percent of individuals with schizophrenia and more than 15 percent of those with major mood disorders kill themselves. These are preventable and senseless deaths that could have been avoided with the right medical intervention and prevention programs. Your resolution would recognize suicide survivors as playing a key role as advocates and educators in prevention efforts, as well as their place in eliminating stigma and reducing the incidence of suicide.

   NAMI commends your past and present leadership and advocacy in suicide prevention and education. Your continued commitment and support has been vital in bringing national recognition to the high incidence of suicide in our country. NAMI strongly supports your resolution to designate November 20, 1999 as ``National Survivors for Prevention of Suicide Day'', in recognition of the contributions suicide survivors can make in suicide prevention strategies.

   Sincerely,

   Laurie Flynn,
Executive Director.

END