,,iv  #aaith ,,congress  #ast ,session  
,h4 ,,res4 #ddi  ,,in ,,the ,,house ,,of
 ,,representatives  ,may #bi1 #bjbe,mr4 
,crow 7for himself1 ,mr4 ,calvert1 ,ms4 
,sewell1 and ,mr4 ,fitzpatrick7         
submitted the following resolution2     
which was referred to the ,committee on 
,energy and ,commerce  ,,resolution     
,supports the designation of ,,als      
,awareness ,month4  ,whereas amyotrophic
 lateral sclerosis 7referred to in this 
preamble as ,,als7 is a progressive     
neurodegenerative disease that affects  
nerve cells in the brain and the spinal 
cord2 ,whereas the life expectancy for  
an individual with ,,als is between #b  
and #e years after the date on which the
 individual receives an ,,als diagnosis2
 ,whereas ,,als occurs throughout the   
world with no racial1 ethnic1 gender1 or
 socioeconomic boundaries2 ,whereas     
,,als may affect any individual in any  
location2 ,whereas the cause of ,,als is
 unknown in up to #ij percent of cases2 
,whereas approximately #aj percent of   

cases have a strong known genetic       
driver2 ,whereas1 on average1 the period
 between the date on which an individual
 first experiences symptoms of ,,als and
 the date on which the individual is    
diagnosed with ,,als is more than #a    
year2 ,whereas the onset of ,,als often 
involves muscle weakness or stiffness1  
and the progression of ,,als results in 
the further weakening1 wasting1 and     
paralysis of-- 7#a7 the muscles of the  
limbs and trunk2 and  7#b7 the muscles  
that control vital functions1 such as   
speech1 swallowing1 and breathing2      
,whereas ,,als can strike individuals of
 any age but predominantly strikes      
adults2 ,whereas it is estimated that   
tens of thousands of individuals in the 
,united ,states have ,,als at any given 
time2 ,whereas1 based on studies of the 
population of the ,united ,states1 more 
than #e1jjj individuals in the ,united  
,states are diagnosed with ,,als each   
year1 and #ae individuals in the ,united
 ,states are diagnosed with ,,als each  

day2 ,whereas every #ij minutes an      
individual is diagnosed with ,,als1 and 
an individual dies from ,,als2 ,whereas 
the majority of individuals with ,,als  
die of respiratory failure2 ,whereas    
military veterans are more likely to be 
diagnosed with ,,als than those with no 
history of military service2 ,whereas1  
as of the date of introduction of this  
resolution1 there is no cure for ,,als2 
,whereas the spouses1 children1 and     
family members of individuals living    
with ,,als provide support to those     
individuals with love1 day-to-day care1 
and more2 and ,whereas an individual    
with ,,als1 and the caregivers of such  
an individual1 can be required to bear  
significant costs for medical care1     
equipment1 and home care services for   
the individual as the disease           
progresses3 ,now1 therefore1 be it ,that
 the ,house of ,representatives-- 7#a7  
supports the designation of ,,als       
,awareness ,month2  7#b7 affirms the    
dedication of the ,house of             

,representatives to ensuring people with
 ,,als have access to effective         
treatments as soon as possible and      
identifying risk factors and causes of  
,,als to prevent new cases2  7#c7       
affirms the dedication of the ,house of 
,representatives to empowering people   
with ,,als to engage with the world in  
the way they want2  7#d7 affirms the    
dedication of the ,house of             
,representatives to reducing physical1  
emotional1 and financial burdens of     
living with ,,als2  7#e7 affirms the    
dedication of the ,house of             
,representatives to ensuring all people 
with ,,als and their caregivers receive 
high-quality services and supports that 
benefit them2 and  7#f7 commends the    
dedication of the family members1       
friends1 organizations1 volunteers1     
researchers1 and caregivers across the  
,united ,states that are working to     
improve the quality and length of life  
of ,,als patients and the development of
 treatments and cures that reach        

patients as soon as possible4