WHEREAS, Every twenty-three seconds someone in the United States sustains a traumatic brain injury, totaling roughly four thousand people daily and 1.4 million people annually; and
     WHEREAS, Out of the 1.4 million people annually who sustain traumatic brain injuries, 50,000 of them will die, while an additional 80,000 will experience the onset of lifelong disabilities as a result of their brain injury; and
     WHEREAS, Traumatic brain injury now affects over 5.3 million American citizens, who now live with resulting disabilities; and
     WHEREAS, In Washington state, traumatic brain injury patients constitute ten percent of the state's population of persons with disabilities; and
     WHEREAS, The Defense and Veterans Brain Injury Center reports that incidences of traumatic brain injury for troops serving in Iraq and Afghanistan are uniquely common compared with past conflicts, with more than two-thirds of blast-injured veterans identified as having a brain injury; and
     WHEREAS, The costs of traumatic brain injury in the United States total more than 60 billion dollars; and
     WHEREAS, There is no cure for traumatic brain injuries, only prevention; and
     WHEREAS, The Brain Injury Association of America has created a partnership with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the Health Resources and Services Administration in the United States Department of Health and Human Services, the Defense Brain and Spinal Cord Injury Program for veterans and military personnel, the Washington Protection and Advocacy System, and the Brain Injury Association of Washington that strives to provide a better future for traumatic brain injury patients through prevention, research, education, and advocacy; and
     WHEREAS, The traumatic brain injury advocacy groups already mentioned have recognized and declared the month of March 2010 National Brain Injury Awareness Month;
     NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED, That the Washington State Senate recognize and honor the work of these organizations in their efforts to combat traumatic brain injuries; and
     BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, That the Washington State Senate honor these organizations and the victims of traumatic brain injury during the month of March, National Brain Injury Awareness Month.