American Heart Association proposes Cardiac Emergency Response Plan bill in ND

American Heart Association proposes Cardiac Emergency Response Plan bill in ND

The American Heart Association led a live cardiac drill at the Gateway to Science on Saturday to show how Cardiac Emergency Response Plans can save lives. It plans to propose a new law this legislative session to help keep communities safe.

According to the American Heart Association, cardiac arrests take the lives of 436,000 Americans in one year. It says that only around 40 percent of people who go into cardiac arrest outside of a hospital receive vital and immediate assistance before professionals arrive at the scene.

“Time matters, seconds matter, and we need to act as individuals. We can’t wait for them,” said Tony Burke, state government relations director at the American Heart Association.

The American Heart Association says a person’s survival rate when in cardiac arrest lessens by 10 percent with each passing minute. 70 percent of children survive one with an AED. A variety of speakers presented at the drill, sharing the importance of knowing hands-only CPR and how to use an AED.

Michelle Tipton lost her 17-year-old son to cardiac arrest. She has shared her son’s story many times in hopes of increasing awareness of the situation.

“AEDs are everywhere. Have somebody go find one. Bring it to the scene. Start compressions right away, and, hopefully, we’ll save many more lives,” said Tipton.

The American Heart Association plans to propose a bill that would require schools and athletic facilities to have a clearly visible and accessible AED on their grounds and a Cardiac Emergency Response Plan with instructions on how to handle the situation.

“It’s just a tremendous opportunity for us to use those hearts of the community to have Cardiac Emergency Response Plans in place and the equipment to do so, so that in the case of a sudden cardiac arrest, people can act in the community,” said Burke.

The bill will be introduced to the North Dakota legislature in the 2025 session.