HOUSE JOINT MEMORIAL 14

51st legislature - STATE OF NEW MEXICO - first session, 2013

INTRODUCED BY

Gail Chasey

A JOINT MEMORIAL

PROCLAIMING JANUARY 30, 2013 TO BE "MULTIPLE SCLEROSIS DAY IN THE LEGISLATURE".

     WHEREAS, multiple sclerosis is an unpredictable, often disabling disease of the central nervous system that interrupts the flow of information between the brain and the body and can prevent affected people from moving; and

     WHEREAS, more than four hundred thousand people in the United States are living with multiple sclerosis, and every hour another person is newly diagnosed; and

     WHEREAS, the New Mexico chapter of the national multiple sclerosis society reports that more than two thousand nine hundred people in this state are living with multiple sclerosis; and

     WHEREAS, multiple sclerosis generally strikes people between the ages of twenty and fifty, attacking them in the prime of their lives; and

     WHEREAS, symptoms of multiple sclerosis range from numbness and tingling in the body to blindness and paralysis, and the progress, severity and specific symptoms of the disease in any one person cannot yet be predicted; and

     WHEREAS, advances in research and treatment are moving the country and the world closer to being free of this disease; and

     WHEREAS, "Walk MS" and "Bike MS" events are scheduled this year throughout the state; and

     WHEREAS, the New Mexico chapter of the national multiple sclerosis society has devoted programs and services to enhance the lives of people living with this disease; has invested in research to find a cause and a cure for this disease; has been committed throughout the years to mobilizing people in the state who advocate on behalf of those affected by this disease; and is planning several major statewide fundraisers and educational programs to raise awareness about multiple sclerosis;

     NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF NEW MEXICO that January 30, 2013 be proclaimed "Multiple Sclerosis Day in the Legislature"; and

     BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that a copy of this memorial be transmitted to the New Mexico chapter of the national multiple sclerosis society.