The Society and SCA Coalition Offer Remarks at Press Conference on Josh Miller HEARTS Act

Representing the Heart Rhythm Society and the Sudden Cardiac Arrest Coalition (SCAC), David Rosenbaum, MD, FHRS, Chair of the Heart Rhythm Society Research Subcommittee, offered a statement in support of HR 4926, the HEARTS Act, which would establish a federal grant program to enable the purchase of AEDs by elementary and secondary schools across the nation.

The press conference was opened by bill sponsor Rep. Betty Sutton (D-OH) and Rep. Lois Capps (D-CA). Also speaking were the parents of the bill's namesake, Josh Miller, who died while attending school after not receiving an AED shock in time, and Terry Gordon, MD, who led the effort to implement an Ohio-wide AEDs-in-Schools Policy, the program after which the HEARTS Act is modeled.

Additional participatants were John Acompora, who led a similar effort to mandate state-wide placement of AEDs in schools in New York after his son died, and Leah Olverd, a 15-year-old, whose life was saved because of the presence of an AED.

Representatives from the American Heart Association, American Red Cross, International Association of Firefighters and the National Safety Council also offered remarks.

Read the SCA Coalition Press Release on the event.