DOWNERS GROVE, Ill. – Legislation sponsored by state Rep. Anne Stava-Murray, D-Naperville, to expand the state’s suicide prevention efforts and implement a comprehensive suicide prevention strategy was signed into law on Friday.

“Suicide prevention is a critical part of our larger discussions on wellness, mental health and public health. As we talk about improving healthcare and outcomes, we have to make sure that the state is invested in a comprehensive suicide prevention plan as a part of those discussions,” said Stava-Murray. “When we invest resources into prevention, education, and meaningful treatment and long-term care for these individuals, we can save lives and strengthen families.”

Stava-Murray’s Senate Bill 1425, which passed the House unanimously this spring, requires the Illinois Department of Public Health to coordinate suicide prevention, intervention and postvention efforts statewide. The measure also restructures the state’s current approach to prevention strategies to fit best practices based on current research and guidance from the Illinois Suicide Prevention Alliance.

“Suicide is the eleventh leading cause of death in Illinois, yet in the past the State has failed to devote any resources to its prevention,” said Steve Moore, Co-Chair of the Illinois Chapter of the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention. “By requiring the creation of a comprehensive suicide prevention plan and directing the Department of Public Health to implement that plan, this law addresses this serious, yet preventable public health issue.”