WHEREAS, Spinal muscular atrophy (SMA) kills more children than any other genetic disease; and

WHEREAS, SMA causes degeneration in voluntary muscle movement for those impacted by the disease, eventually impacting the ability to walk, sit, crawl, stand, breathe, eat, and even swallow; and

WHEREAS, One in every 40 people, or nearly 10 million Americans, unknowingly carries the gene responsible for SMA. Few have any known family history; and

WHEREAS, SMA is a pan-ethnic disease that does not discriminate based on race, ethnicity, or gender; and

WHEREAS, SMA does not impact the mind. Children with SMA are bright, sensitive, and playful in spite of their failing bodies; and

WHEREAS, Most children impacted by SMA succumb to the disease before their second birthday; and

WHEREAS, There is currently no treatment and no cure for SMA, but the National Institutes of Health (NIH) selected SMA as the disease closest to treatment of more than 600 neurological disorders; and

WHEREAS, The nation’s leading researchers signed a statement stressing that, with adequate resources, a viable treatment or cure is attainable in as little as five years; and

WHEREAS, SMA research is considered a “model” approach, with the potential of benefiting millions of people impacted by other diseases, including ALS/Lou Gehrig’s Disease, Alzheimer’s, Parkinson’s, Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy, Fragile X, and Tay Sachs, among others; and

WHEREAS, Increased awareness of SMA will lead to increased knowledge and increased support for both disease research and families affected by the disease, hopefully leading to a cure; and

WHEREAS, August has been declared as National Spinal Muscular Atrophy Awareness Month in order to raise awareness and help promote research into this devastating disease; now, therefore, be it