Summary — SCR 68 (Blakespear): Tardive Dyskinesia Awareness Week
Status: Concurrent resolution; introduced April 28, 2025. Sent to the Secretary of State by the Secretary of the Senate. Fiscal committee: No.
Note: The materials provided include several different documents labeled “SCR 68” from multiple jurisdictions with unrelated subjects. This summary focuses on the California Senate Concurrent Resolution authored by Senator Blakespear, which declares a Tardive Dyskinesia awareness week.
Purpose and intent
- To declare the week of May 5, 2025, as Tardive Dyskinesia Awareness Week (TDAW) in California.
- To raise awareness among health care providers, patients, and care partners about tardive dyskinesia (TD), emphasize early detection and routine screening, and encourage alignment of care with clinical best practices.
Key provisions and findings
- Defines TD as a potential side effect of prolonged antipsychotic use characterized by uncontrollable, abnormal, repetitive movements of the face, torso, limbs, or extremities.
- Identifies populations at higher risk: adults over age 55, Black individuals, women, people with mood or substance use disorders, those with intellectual disabilities or CNS injuries, and people with high cumulative antipsychotic exposure.
- Cites an estimate that about 800,000 adults in the U.S. live with TD and that roughly 60% remain undiagnosed.
- Notes that even mild TD symptoms can be stigmatizing and impair physical, social, and emotional well-being.
- References the American Psychiatric Association’s recommendation for routine TD screening during antipsychotic treatment and encourages affected individuals to consult their health care providers for risk assessment and treatment decisions.
- States that FDA‑approved treatments for TD exist and can improve symptoms and quality of life for many patients.
- Encourages TD screening education and awareness initiatives for clinicians, patients, and care partners.
- Directs the Secretary of the Senate to transmit copies of the resolution to the author for distribution.
Who is affected / potential impact
- Symbolic/educational rather than legally binding: as a concurrent resolution, it does not create new legal requirements or funding.
- Primary beneficiaries of increased awareness and screening: people prescribed antipsychotics, their families/caregivers, mental health and primary care providers, and public health outreach programs.
- May prompt providers and health systems to prioritize routine TD screening, patient education, and use of available FDA‑approved treatments.
Procedural/timeline notes
- Classified as a concurrent resolution (adopted by both legislative houses; nonstatutory).
- Fiscal committee review: not required / no fiscal impact stated.
- Resolution declares a specific awareness week (May 5–11, 2025) and supports related awareness activities consistent with clinical best practices.
