1st Session, 43rd Legislature

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Bill 217

THE MEN'S MENTAL HEALTH AWARENESS WEEK ACT (COMMEMORATION OF DAYS, WEEKS AND MONTHS ACT AMENDED)

(Assented to                                         )

HIS MAJESTY, by and with the advice and consent of the Legislative Assembly of Manitoba, enacts as follows:

C.C.S.M. c. C150.5 amended

1   The Commemoration of Days, Weeks and Months Act is amended by this Act.

2   The following is added after Schedule 20:

SCHEDULE 20.1
MEN'S MENTAL HEALTH AWARENESS WEEK

WHEREAS in Canada, men account for close to 75% of deaths by suicide, which is the second leading cause of death among men under the age of 50;

AND WHEREAS the increased rate of men experiencing mental health difficulties in rural Manitoba has been described as a silent crisis;

AND WHEREAS signs and symptoms of mental health conditions may present themselves differently in men, which can result in men being undiagnosed and untreated;

AND WHEREAS men can be reluctant to talk about their mental health and to seek help;

AND WHEREAS a growing number of men throughout Manitoba who have experienced mental health challenges are sharing their stories and lending support to others;

AND WHEREAS raising awareness of men's mental health increases the public's understanding of how mental health conditions may present themselves differently in men and reduces the stigma that often prevents men from seeking help;

THEREFORE the following is proclaimed throughout Manitoba:

Men's Mental Health Awareness Week

1   In each year, the week before the third Sunday in June (Father's Day) is to be known as Men's Mental Health Awareness Week.

Coming into force

3   This Act comes into force on the day it receives royal assent.