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IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

January 28, 2025

Mr. Fitzpatrick (for himself, Mr. DeSaulnier, Mrs. Hayes, Mr. Cline, Ms. Brownley, and Mr. Reschenthaler) submitted the following resolution; which was referred to the Committee on Energy and Commerce

RESOLUTION

Expressing support for the designation of January 30, 2025, as CTE (chronic traumatic encephalopathy) and RHI (repeated head impacts) Awareness Day.

Whereas chronic traumatic encephalopathy, or CTE, is a progressive degenerative brain disease which appears in persons with a history of repeated head injury sustained over a period of years; Whereas, after decades of advancement in research related to repeated head injuries, in October 2022, the National Institutes of Health (NIH) formally acknowledged that there is a causal link between repeated blows to the head and CTE; Whereas repetitive head impacts (RHI) have been shown to cause damage to the white matter in developing brains; Whereas researchers have found that in brains with CTE, there is buildup of an abnormal protein, tau, in the brain leading to brain atrophy; Whereas tau buildup is also found in Alzheimer’s disease and other forms of dementia, and people with CTE may show signs of another neurodegenerative disease, including Alzheimer’s, amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), Lewy body disease (LBD), and Parkinson’s disease; Whereas the risk of developing CTE is greatest with athletes and military veterans, who frequently endure repeated subconcussive blows to the head from playing contact sports or suffer traumatic injury from military training or blasting, but it has also appeared in survivors of domestic abuse and those with epilepsy; Whereas symptoms associated with CTE and RHI, such as memory loss, tremors, addiction, progressive dementia, depression, suicidal thoughts, impaired judgment, and paranoia, most often are present years or decades after the brain trauma or hits stop, but have been found in a patient as young as 17 years old; Whereas, currently, CTE can only be definitively diagnosed after death through postmortem neuropathological analysis; Whereas advocacy organizations, health care providers, and institutional researchers are dedicated to studying the causes and symptoms of CTE in order to enable parents and families to make informed decisions regarding the best interests of their children in youth sports and to develop an earlier diagnostic tool so patients may address these symptoms as early as possible; and Whereas the Patrick Risha CTE Awareness Foundation, the Chandler Kimball Foundation, the Mac Parkman Foundation, the Matthew Benedict’s One Last Goal foundation, the Zac Easter’s CTE Hope foundation, and many other organizations celebrate CTE and RHI Awareness Day across the United States in order to reflect on those lost to CTE and RHI, how to help those suffering with the disease, and most importantly how to stop the disease: Now, therefore, be it Resolved, That the House of Representatives—

(1) supports the designation of CTE and RHI Awareness Day;

(2) recognizes the doctors and researchers who advance the study of CTE (chronic traumatic encephalopathy) and RHI (repeated head impacts), and thanks those who participate in research studies and brain donations;

(3) recognizes persons who may be suffering from symptoms of CTE and RHI and their families and caregivers;

(4) encourages the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and the National Institutes of Health (NIH) to publish information on CTE and RHI, in concussion education materials, and educate the public on the symptoms and potential contributing factors; and

(5) encourages the people of the United States to observe the day with appropriate ceremonies and activities that promote awareness of CTE and RHI. <all>