AEDs for Our Nation's Schools

There are no words to describe the pain we feel when a young life is lost.

To know Josh Miller was to know a kind-hearted and generous young man with limitless potential. Josh was a Barberton High School sophomore with a 4.0 grade point average, a linebacker who dreamed of playing football for Ohio State someday.

But one day, without warning, these dreams were cut short.

Josh had never shown any signs of heart trouble, but during the final game of the 2000 football season, he collapsed after leaving the field. By the time his heart was shocked with an automated external defibrillator, it was too late to save him.

Josh suffered a sudden cardiac arrest, which according to the American Heart Association claims the lives of about 330,000 Americans every year. The vast majority of these individuals, like Josh, will not have displayed any signs of heart trouble beforehand.

Yet there is an easy-to-use, relatively inexpensive piece of medical equipment that can more than double the odds of survival for someone experiencing a sudden cardiac arrest.

An automated external defibrillator, or AED, is the single most effective treatment for starting the heart after a sudden cardiac arrest. And because chances of survival decrease up to 10% for every minute that passes, every second is critical.

It is incredibly important that we take steps to educate the public about the life and death difference that using these devices would make. I would like to commend my colleague, Congressman Kuhl, for his efforts in promoting increased access to AEDs through the resolution that was passed this afternoon.

Later this week, I will be introducing a piece of legislation that will take another step to increase the availability of AEDs in our communities.

The Josh Miller HEARTS Act will establish a grant program that will help schools across the country purchase these lifesaving devices.

Schools are central gathering places in our communities, and placing AEDs in our schools will not only save the lives of the students enrolled there, but they will be available for teachers and staff, parents and volunteers, and the many other members of the community who pass through the halls every single day.

This legislation will be modeled on a similar program recently completed in the State of Ohio. Dr. Terry Gordon, a cardiologist at Akron General Hospital, has dedicated his life to this campaign, and his tireless efforts in Ohio led to the adoption of a statewide initiative to put an AED into every school across the state. Already, this program has saved the lives of 12 children and adults as a direct result.

I hope we in Congress can build on Dr. Gordon's good work and carry out this program at the national level.

Losing a young life like Josh's can bring about a sense of helplessness, but today we have the opportunity to act. I urge my colleagues to join me in supporting this effort to bring AEDs into every single school across the country.