FIRST REGULAR SESSION
House Concurrent Resolution No. 27
95TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY
Whereas, during the transition from childhood to adulthood, adolescents establish unhealthy patterns of behavior and make poor lifestyle choices that affect both their current and future health. For example, 80% of adolescents who are obese will remain obese as adults; and
Whereas, many adolescents may not have access to primary health care and the National Association of County and City Health Officials (NACCHO) encourages the adolescent health care platform to occur in multiple settings, including traditional and nontraditional settings, such as schools; and
Whereas, adolescents and young adults are adversely affected by serious health and safety issues such as motor vehicle crashes, violence, and substance abuse. They also struggle to adopt behaviors that could decrease their risk of developing chronic diseases in adulthood - behaviors such as eating nutritiously, engaging in physical activity, and choosing not to use tobacco. Environmental factors such as family, peer group, school, and community characteristics also contribute to the challenges that adolescents face. In the past few years, immunizations have been licensed to provide protection for teens against infections and diseases such as meningiocococcal, pertussis, and cervical cancer; and
Whereas, the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP), the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP), the American Academy of Family Practitioners (AAFP), and the American Medical Association (AMA) recommend a routine health care visit for adolescents aged 11-12 to receive recommendations on immunizations and routine health screenings for adolescents; and
Whereas, the United States Department of Health and Senior Services' Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) has developed, in conjunction with AAP, the Bright Futures Initiative, which provides a set of guidelines including recommendations on immunizations and routine health screenings for adolescents; and
Whereas, NACCHO supports the development of an adolescent health care platform which would address unmet prevention needs among adolescents, including health care screenings and testing, age-appropriate immunizations, injury prevention, obesity prevention, and mental health screenings; and
Whereas, ACIP recommends the use of FDA-approved vaccines for pertussis, tetanus, meningitis, and HPV in adolescents, and the Centers for Disease Control has launched a national campaign to raise awareness about adolescent health and immunizations; and
Whereas, the Centers for Disease Control's National Immunization Survey (NIS) found that immunization coverage levels among adolescents in 2006 did not meet the Healthy People 2010 objective of 90% coverage for 13-15 year olds for any of the vaccines measured; and
Whereas, the Society for Adolescent Medicine has found that adolescent well visits are one of the best tools of preventive care to ensure continued health from childhood to adulthood and that children and adolescents who regularly visit a primary care physician are less likely to have emergency room visits and preventable hospitalizations; and
Whereas, because adolescents remain under the guardianship of their parents, parental awareness of the need for an adolescent well visit plays an enormous role in the incidence of adolescent well visits:
Now, therefore, be it resolved that the members of the House of Representatives of the Ninety-fifth General Assembly, First Regular Session, the Senate concurring therein, hereby urge the Department of Health and Senior Services to educate parents on the importance of an adolescent well physical to prevent chronic disease, appropriately intervene to better treat chronic disease, and update immunizations; and
Be it further resolved that the Chief Clerk of the Missouri House of Representatives be instructed to prepare a properly inscribed copy of this resolution for Margaret Donnelly, Director of the Department of Health and Senior Services.
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