NurseWeek

House approves defibrillator bill

By Rachael Kagan
August 5, 2000


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Washington. A bill to increase public access to life-saving equipment for heart attack victims is making its way through Congress, after receiving overwhelming approval in the House of Representatives in May.

The Cardiac Arrest Survival Act (HR 2498) would allow automatic external defibrillators (AEDs) to be placed in federal buildings to immediately aid victims of cardiac arrest. The bill also would shield from liability those who use the devices, so that people won’t hesitate to deploy them when needed.

The initiative follows action by 47 states and many private companies that have sought to make AEDs more publicly available, said Carole Johnson, government relations manager for the American Heart Association, which helped to develop the legislation.

"It will help significantly reduce the death rate due to cardiac arrest," she said, noting that 250,000 Americans die each year from heart attacks.

Both houses of Congress have passed a version of the bill. In November, the Senate approved a measure sponsored by Slade Gorton, R-Wash. The House effort was sponsored by Cliff Stearns, R.-Fla., and passed in May with all but two members granting approval.

Now, staffers are using the August recess to come up with a combined bill they would like to see sail through both chambers this fall and land on the President Clinton’s desk before Congress adjourns in October.