Community Access to Emergency Defibrillation Act of 2002

Community Access to Emergency Defibrillation Act of 2002 - Amends the Public Health Service Act to direct the Secretary of Health and Human Services to award grants to States, political subdivisions of States, Indian tribes, and tribal organizations to develop and implement public access defibrillation programs by: (1) training and equipping local emergency medical services personnel to administer immediate care, including cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) and automated external defibrillation (AED), to cardiac arrest victims; (2) purchasing AEDs, placing the defibrillators in public places where cardiac arrests are likely to occur, and training personnel in such places to administer CPR and AED to such victims; (3) setting procedures for proper maintenance and testing of such devices; (4) providing training to members of the public in CPR and AED; (5) integrating the emergency medical services system with the public access defibrillation programs; and (6) encouraging private companies to purchase AEDs and provide training for their employees to administer CPR and AED to cardiac arrest victims in their community.

Directs the Secretary to award grants to States, Indian tribes, and tribal organizations to develop and implement innovative, comprehensive, community-based public access defibrillation demonstration projects that: (1) provide CPR and AED to cardiac arrest victims in unique settings; (2) provide training to community members in CPR and AED; and (3) maximize community access to AEDs.

Directs the Secretary to award a grant to a health care organization to establish a national information clearinghouse that provides information to increase public access to defibrillation in schools.

[Congressional Bills 107th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 1275 Introduced in Senate (IS)]







107th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                S. 1275

  To amend the Public Health Service Act to provide grants for public 
    access defibrillation programs and public access defibrillation 
            demonstration projects, and for other purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                             July 31, 2001

Mr. Frist (for himself, Mr. Kennedy, Mr. Jeffords, Mr. Hutchinson, Mr. 
    Dodd, Ms. Collins, Mr. Bingaman, Mr. Feingold, Mrs. Murray, Mr. 
Edwards, and Mr. Corzine) introduced the following bill; which was read 
 twice and referred to the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and 
                                Pensions

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
  To amend the Public Health Service Act to provide grants for public 
    access defibrillation programs and public access defibrillation 
            demonstration projects, and for other purposes.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Community Access to Emergency 
Defibrillation Act of 2001''.

SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

    Congress makes the following findings:
            (1) Over 220,000 Americans die each year from cardiac 
        arrest. Every 2 minutes, an individual goes into cardiac arrest 
        in the United States.
            (2) The chance of successfully returning to a normal heart 
        rhythm diminishes by 10 percent each minute following sudden 
        cardiac arrest.
            (3) Eighty percent of cardiac arrests are caused by 
        ventricular fibrillation, for which defibrillation is the only 
        effective treatment.
            (4) Sixty percent of all cardiac arrests occur outside the 
        hospital. The average national survival rate for out-of-
        hospital cardiac arrest is only 5 percent.
            (5) Communities that have established and implemented 
        public access defibrillation programs have achieved average 
        survival rates for out-of-hospital cardiac arrest as high as 50 
        percent.
            (6) According to the American Heart Association, wide use 
        of defibrillators could save as many as 50,000 lives nationally 
        each year.
            (7) Successful public access defibrillation programs ensure 
        that cardiac arrest victims have access to early 911 
        notification, early cardiopulmonary resuscitation, early 
        defibrillation, and early advanced care.

SEC. 3. PUBLIC ACCESS DEFIBRILLATION PROGRAMS AND PROJECTS.

    Part B of title III of the Public Health Service Act (42 U.S.C. 243 
et seq.), as amended by Public Law 106-310, is amended by adding after 
section 311 the following:

``SEC. 312. PUBLIC ACCESS DEFIBRILLATION PROGRAMS.

    ``(a) In General.--The Secretary shall award grants to States, 
political subdivisions of States, Indian tribes, and tribal 
organizations to develop and implement public access defibrillation 
programs--
            ``(1) by training and equipping local emergency medical 
        services personnel, including firefighters, police officers, 
        paramedics, emergency medical technicians, and other first 
        responders, to administer immediate care, including 
        cardiopulmonary resuscitation and automated external 
        defibrillation, to cardiac arrest victims;
            ``(2) by purchasing automated external defibrillators, 
        placing the defibrillators in public places where cardiac 
        arrests are likely to occur, and training personnel in such 
        places to administer cardiopulmonary resuscitation and 
        automated external defibrillation to cardiac arrest victims;
            ``(3) by setting procedures for proper maintenance and 
        testing of such devices, according to the guidelines of the 
        manufacturers of the devices;
            ``(4) by providing training to members of the public in 
        cardiopulmonary resuscitation and automated external 
        defibrillation;
            ``(5) by integrating the emergency medical services system 
        with the public access defibrillation programs so that 
        emergency medical services personnel, including dispatchers, 
        are informed about the location of automated external 
        defibrillators in their community; and
            ``(6) by encouraging private companies, including small 
        businesses, to purchase automated external defibrillators and 
        provide training for their employees to administer 
        cardiopulmonary resuscitation and external automated 
        defibrillation to cardiac arrest victims in their community.
    ``(b) Preference.--In awarding grants under subsection (a), the 
Secretary shall give a preference to a State, political subdivision of 
a State, Indian tribe, or tribal organization that--
            ``(1) has a particularly low local survival rate for 
        cardiac arrests, or a particularly low local response rate for 
        cardiac arrest victims; or
            ``(2) demonstrates in its application the greatest 
        commitment to establishing and maintaining a public access 
        defibrillation program.
    ``(c) Use of Funds.--A State, political subdivision of a State, 
Indian tribe, or tribal organization that receives a grant under 
subsection (a) may use funds received through such grant to--
            ``(1) purchase automated external defibrillators that have 
        been approved, or cleared for marketing, by the Food and Drug 
        Administration;
            ``(2) provide automated external defibrillation and basic 
        life support training in automated external defibrillator usage 
        through nationally recognized courses;
            ``(3) provide information to community members about the 
        public access defibrillation program to be funded with the 
        grant;
            ``(4) provide information to the local emergency medical 
        services system regarding the placement of automated external 
        defibrillators in public places;
            ``(5) produce such materials as may be necessary to 
        encourage private companies, including small businesses, to 
        purchase automated external defibrillators; and
            ``(6) carry out other activities that the Secretary 
        determines are necessary or useful to pursue the purposes of 
        this section.
    ``(d) Application.--
            ``(1) In general.--To be eligible to receive a grant under 
        subsection (a), a State, political subdivision of a State, 
        Indian tribe, or tribal organization shall prepare and submit 
        an application to the Secretary at such time, in such manner, 
        and containing such information as the Secretary may reasonably 
        require.
            ``(2) Contents.--An application submitted under paragraph 
        (1) shall--
                    ``(A) describe the comprehensive public access 
                defibrillation program to be funded with the grant and 
                demonstrate how such program would make automated 
                external defibrillation accessible and available to 
                cardiac arrest victims in the community;
                    ``(B) contain procedures for implementing 
                appropriate nationally recognized training courses in 
                performing cardiopulmonary resuscitation and the use of 
                automated external defibrillators;
                    ``(C) contain procedures for ensuring direct 
                involvement of a licensed medical professional and 
                coordination with the local emergency medical services 
                system in the oversight of training and notification of 
                incidents of the use of the automated external 
                defibrillators;
                    ``(D) contain procedures for proper maintenance and 
                testing of the automated external defibrillators, 
                according to the labeling of the manufacturer;
                    ``(E) contain procedures for ensuring notification 
                of local emergency medical services system personnel, 
                including dispatchers, of the location and type of 
                devices used in the public access defibrillation 
                program; and
                    ``(F) provide for the collection of data regarding 
                the effectiveness of the public access defibrillation 
                program to be funded with the grant in affecting the 
                out-of-hospital cardiac arrest survival rate.
    ``(e) Authorization of Appropriations.--There is authorized to be 
appropriated to carry out this section $50,000,000 for each of fiscal 
years 2002 through 2007. Not more than 10 percent of amounts received 
under a grant awarded under this section may be used for administrative 
expenses.

``SEC. 313. PUBLIC ACCESS DEFIBRILLATION DEMONSTRATION PROJECTS.

    ``(a) In General.--The Secretary shall award grants to political 
subdivisions of States, Indian tribes, and tribal organizations to 
develop and implement innovative, comprehensive, community-based public 
access defibrillation demonstration projects that--
            ``(1) provide cardiopulmonary resuscitation and automated 
        external defibrillation to cardiac arrest victims in unique 
        settings;
            ``(2) provide training to community members in 
        cardiopulmonary resuscitation and automated external 
        defibrillation; and
            ``(3) maximize community access to automated external 
        defibrillators.
    ``(b) Use of Funds.--A recipient of a grant under subsection (a) 
shall use the funds provided through the grant to--
            ``(1) purchase automated external defibrillators that have 
        been approved, or cleared for marketing, by the Food and Drug 
        Administration;
            ``(2) provide basic life training in automated external 
        defibrillator usage through nationally recognized courses;
            ``(3) provide information to community members about the 
        public access defibrillation demonstration project to be funded 
        with the grant;
            ``(4) provide information to the local emergency medical 
        services system regarding the placement of automated external 
        defibrillators in the unique settings; and
            ``(5) carry out other activities that the Secretary 
        determines are necessary or useful to pursue the purposes of 
        this section.
    ``(c) Application.--
            ``(1) In general.--To be eligible to receive a grant under 
        subsection (a), a political subdivision of a State, Indian 
        tribe, or tribal organization shall prepare and submit an 
        application to the Secretary at such time, in such manner, and 
        containing such information as the Secretary may reasonably 
        require.
            ``(2) Contents.--An application submitted under paragraph 
        (1) may--
                    ``(A) describe the innovative, comprehensive, 
                community-based public access defibrillation 
                demonstration project to be funded with the grant;
                    ``(B) explain how such public access defibrillation 
                demonstration project represents innovation in 
                providing public access to automated external 
                defibrillation; and
                    ``(C) provide for the collection of data regarding 
                the effectiveness of the demonstration project to be 
                funded with the grant in--
                            ``(i) providing emergency cardiopulmonary 
                        resuscitation and automated external 
                        defibrillation to cardiac arrest victims in the 
                        setting served by the demonstration project; 
                        and
                            ``(ii) affecting the cardiac arrest 
                        survival rate in the setting served by the 
                        demonstration project.
    ``(d) Authorization of Appropriations.--There is authorized to be 
appropriated to carry out this section $5,000,000 for each of fiscal 
years 2002 through 2007. Not more than 10 percent of amounts received 
under a grant awarded under this section may be used for administrative 
expenses.''.

``SEC. 313A. GRANTS FOR ACCESS TO DEFIBRILLATION.

    ``(a) Program Authorized.--The Secretary of Health and Human 
Services shall award a grant to a health care organization to establish 
a national information clearinghouse that provides information to 
increase public access to defibrillation in schools.
    ``(b) Duties.--The health care organization that receives a grant 
under this section shall promote public access to defibrillation in 
schools by--
            ``(1) providing timely information to entities regarding 
        public access defibrillation program implementation and 
        development;
            ``(2) developing and providing comprehensive program 
        materials to establish a public access defibrillation program 
        in schools;
            ``(3) providing support to CPR and AED training programs;
            ``(4) fostering new and existing community partnerships 
        with and among public and private organizations (such as local 
        educational agencies, nonprofit organizations, public health 
        organizations, emergency medical service providers, fire and 
        police departments, and parent-teacher associations) to promote 
        public access to defibrillation in schools;
            ``(5) establishing a data base to gather information in a 
        central location regarding sudden cardiac arrest in the 
        pediatric population and identifying or conducting further 
        research into the problem; and
            ``(6) providing assistance to communities that wish to 
        develop screening programs for at risk youth.
    ``(c) Application.--A health care organization desiring a grant 
under this section shall submit an application to the Secretary at such 
time, in such manner, and accompanied by such information as the 
Secretary may reasonably require.
    ``(d) Report.--Not later than 5 years after the date on which the 
health care organization receives a grant under this section, such 
organization shall submit to the Secretary of Health and Human Services 
a report that describes activities carried out with funds received 
under this section. Not later than 3 months after the date on which 
such report is received by the Secretary of Health and Human Services, 
the Secretary shall prepare and submit to the appropriate committees of 
Congress an evaluation that reviews such report and evaluates the 
success of such clearinghouse.
    ``(e) Authorization of Appropriations.--From funds authorized to be 
appropriated for fiscal years 2002 through 2006 for activities and 
programs under the Department of Health and Human Services, $800,000 of 
such funds may be appropriated to carry out the programs described in 
this section for each of the fiscal years 2002 through 2006.''.
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