Governor Stein Proclaims Brain Injury Awareness Month

Brain Injury Awareness Month

2026

By The Governor Of The State Of North Carolina

A Proclamation

Whereas, traumatic brain injury (TBI) is an injury to the brain caused by an external physical force, with leading causes being slips and falls, motor vehicle accidents, collisions with objects, assaults, and contact sports; and TBI is a serious public health problem in North Carolina and the nation, often resulting in long-term or permanent disability or death; and

Whereas, TBI is one form of acquired brain injury (ABI). ABIs also include traumatic and non-traumatic brain injuries such as strokes, brain aneurysms, brain tumors, brain infections, anoxic brain injuries, and non-fatal overdoses; and

Whereas, an estimated 2.8 million Americans sustain TBIs every year, and among them, more than 50,000 people die and roughly 282,000 are hospitalized; and approximately 5.3 million Americans live with a TBI-related disability.

Whereas, in North Carolina, more than 80,000 people will likely sustain a TBI this year, and many survivors will be left permanently disabled; and TBI may impact how a person moves and interacts with their environment and may impact communication, processing of emotions, and how a person thinks; and

Whereas, active duty and reserve service members, of which there are many in North Carolina, are at increased risk for sustaining a TBI compared to their civilian peers due in part to the specific demographics of the military with young men ages 18 to 24 being most at risk for TBI; and

Whereas, according to the National Coalition Against Domestic Violence, 35.2 percent of North Carolina women and 30.3 percent of North Carolina men experience intimate partner physical violence, sexual violence, and/or intimate partner stalking in their lifetimes, with a frequent result being TBI; and

Whereas, the North Carolina Brain Injury Advisory Council, the Brain Injury Association of North Carolina (www.bianc.net), and other stakeholders provide awareness, education, prevention, training, and services to North Carolinians living with TBIs and other ABIs; these services are also offered to their families, health care professionals, and others statewide;

Now, Therefore, I, Josh Stein, Governor of the State of North Carolina, do hereby proclaim March 2026 as “Brain Injury Awareness Month” in North Carolina and commend its observance to all residents.

In Witness Whereof, I have hereunto set my hand and affixed the Great Seal of the State of North Carolina at the Capitol in Raleigh this twenty-fifth day of February in the year of our Lord two thousand and twenty-sixth and of the Independence of the United States of America the two hundred and fiftieth.