Issues
Health Care Defibrillators
I am a strong supporter of increased access
to Automated External Defibrillators (AEDs), which are portable
devices used to restore normal heart rhythm to people in cardiac
arrest. In 2000, I worked to pass the Rural
Access to Emergency Devices Act, which created a federal
grant program to provide rural communities with funds to purchase
defibrillators. The following year, it was announced that
Wisconsin would be one of the first three states to receive
federal funding to place AEDs in rural areas. Later that year,
Congress approved $12.5 million to fund this program nationally.
The program has since helped 49 states increase the number
of defibrillators in their rural communities. Wisconsin has
continued to benefit from this program. In fiscal year 2005,
Wisconsin received $168,000 to purchase AEDs in rural areas.
Click here
to view the list of agencies and counties in Wisconsin that
will receive AEDs under this program.
Throughout 2005, I worked with Senator Susan Collins (R-ME)
to secure additional funding to bring more AEDs to Wisconsin.
In May 2005, I led a bipartisan group of senators in asking
the Senate Appropriations Committee to fully fund the Rural
AED program to meet the needs of our communities. I was pleased
that the Senate voted in October 2005 to provide nearly $10
million in the Labor, Health and Human Services, and Education
appropriations bill for AED programs for 2006. Unfortunately,
the final version of this bill provided only $1.9 million
in funding for the Rural and Community AED programs.
In 2001, Sen. Collins and I introduced legislation to increase
CPR and AED training in schools and provide schools with information
on how to set up a public access defibrillation program. The
ADAM Act (Automatic
Defibrillators in Adam's Memory Act) is aimed at increasing
youth access to AEDs and training students in their use. It
is named after Adam Lemel, a 17-year-old high school student
from Wisconsin who collapsed and died from an undiagnosed
heart condition while playing in a basketball game. I am pleased
that this Act was passed by Congress and signed into law in
July 2003, but Congress has yet to fund the legislation.
While Congress has taken a good first step in improving the
survival rates of cardiac arrest victims throughout the country,
I will continue to fight to ensure that these important programs
are properly funded.
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