[Congressional Bills 105th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 1679 Introduced in House (IH)]







105th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                H. R. 1679

To amend the Public Health Service Act to provide for the establishment 
at the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute of a program regarding 
lifesaving interventions for individuals who experience cardiac arrest, 
                        and for other purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                              May 20, 1997

 Mr. Stearns (for himself, Mr. Abercrombie, Mr. Bachus, Mr. Barrett of 
 Wisconsin, Mr. Boucher, Mr. Burr of North Carolina, Mr. Calvert, Mr. 
Canady of Florida, Ms. Carson, Mr. Castle, Mr. Clement, Mr. Coyne, Mr. 
Davis of Virginia, Mr. DeFazio, Mr. Dellums, Mr. Duncan, Mr. English of 
 Pennsylvania, Mr. Fattah, Mr. Foley, Mr. Frank of Massachusetts, Mr. 
Frost, Mr. Gallegly, Mr. Gekas, Mr. Goodling, Ms. Christian-Green, Mr. 
Hastings of Florida, Mr. Hilliard, Mr. Klink, Mr. Leach, Mr. McDermott, 
 Ms. McKinney, Mr. Mascara, Mr. Meehan, Mrs. Mink of Hawaii, Mr. Moran 
    of Virginia, Mr. Olver, Mr. Pallone, Mr. Payne, Mr. Peterson of 
Pennsylvania, Ms. Rivers, Mr. Schumer, Mr. Shays, Mr. Towns, Mr. Walsh, 
 Mr. Waxman, and Mr. Weldon of Pennsylvania) introduced the following 
         bill; which was referred to the Committee on Commerce

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
To amend the Public Health Service Act to provide for the establishment 
at the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute of a program regarding 
lifesaving interventions for individuals who experience cardiac arrest, 
                        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 ``Cardiac Arrest Survival Act''.

SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

    The Congress finds as follows:
            (1) Each year more than 350,000 adults suffer cardiac 
        arrest, usually away from a hospital. More than 95 percent of 
        them will die, in many cases, because lifesaving defibrillators 
        arrive on the scene too late, if at all.
            (2) These cardiac arrest deaths occur primarily from occult 
        underlying heart disease and from drownings, allergic or 
        sensitivity reactions, or electrical shocks.
            (3) Survival from cardiac arrest requires successful early 
        implementation of a chain of events--the chain of survival 
        which begins when the person sustains a cardiac arrest and 
        continues until the person arrives at the hospital.
            (4) A successful chain of survival requires the first 
        person on the scene to take rapid and simple initial steps to 
        care for the patient and to assure the patient promptly enters 
        the emergency medical services system.
            (5) The first persons on the scene when an arrest occurs 
        are typically lay persons who are friends or family of the 
        victim, fire services, public safety personnel, basic life 
        support emergency medical services providers, teachers, 
        coaches, and supervisors of sports or other extracurricular 
        activities, providers of day care, schoolbus drivers, 
        lifeguards, attendants at public gatherings, coworkers, and 
        other leaders within the community.
            (6) A coordinated Federal response is necessary to ensure 
        that appropriate and timely lifesaving interventions are 
        provided to persons sustaining nontraumatic cardiac arrest. The 
        Federal response should include, but not be limited to--
                    (A) significantly expanded research concerning the 
                efficacy of various methods of providing immediate out-
                of-hospital lifesaving interventions to the 
                nontraumatic cardiac arrest patient;
                    (B) the development of research-based, nationally 
                uniform, easily learned and well retained model core 
                educational content concerning the use of such 
                lifesaving interventions by health care professionals, 
                allied health personnel, emergency medical services 
                personnel, public safety personnel, and other persons 
                who are likely to arrive immediately at the scene of a 
                sudden cardiac arrest;
                    (C) an identification of the legal, political, 
                financial, and other barriers to implementing these 
                lifesaving interventions; and
                    (D) the development of model State legislation to 
                reduce identified barriers and to enhance each State's 
                response to this significant problem.

SEC. 3. NATIONAL INSTITUTES OF HEALTH MODEL PROGRAM ON THE FIRST LINKS 
              IN THE CHAIN OF SURVIVAL.

    Section 421 of the Public Health Service Act (42 U.S.C. 285b-3) is 
amended by adding at the end the following subsection:
    ``(c) Programs under subsection (a)(1)(E) (relating to emergency 
medical services and preventive, diagnostic, therapeutic, and 
rehabilitative approaches) shall include programs for the following:
            ``(1) The development and dissemination, in coordination 
        with the emergency services guidelines promulgated under 
        section 402(a) of title 23, United States Code, by the 
        Associate Administrator for Traffic Safety Programs, Department 
        of Transportation, of a core content for a model State 
training program applicable to cardiac arrest for inclusion in 
appropriate current emergency medical services educational curricula 
and training programs that address lifesaving interventions, including 
cardiopulmonary resuscitation. The core content of such program--
                    ``(A) may be used by health care professionals, 
                allied health personnel, emergency medical services 
                personnel, public safety personnel, and any other 
                persons who are likely to arrive immediately at the 
                scene of a sudden cardiac arrest (in this subsection 
                referred to as `cardiac arrest care providers') to 
                provide lifesaving interventions, including 
                cardiopulmonary resuscitation;
                    ``(B) shall include age-specific criteria for the 
                use of particular techniques, which shall include 
                infants and children; and
                    ``(C) shall be reevaluated as additional 
                interventions are shown to be effective.
            ``(2) The operation of a demonstration project to provide 
        training in such core content for cardiac arrest care 
        providers.
            ``(3) The definition and identification of cardiac arrest 
        care providers, by personal relationship, exposure to arrest or 
        trauma, occupation (including health professionals), or 
        otherwise, who could provide benefit to victims of out-of-
        hospital arrest by comprehension of such core content.
            ``(4) The establishment of criteria for completion and 
        comprehension of such core content, including consideration of 
        inclusion in health and safety educational curricula.
            ``(5) The identification and development of equipment and 
        supplies that should be accessible to cardiac arrest care 
        providers to permit lifesaving interventions by preplacement of 
        such equipment in appropriate locations.
            ``(6) The development of model State legislation (or 
        Federal legislation applicable to Federal territories, 
        facilities, and employees) in cooperation with the Attorney 
        General, which model legislation shall be developed in 
        accordance with the following:
                    ``(A) The purpose of the model legislation shall be 
                to ensure--
                            ``(i) access to emergency medical services 
                        through consideration of a requirement for 
                        public placement of lifesaving equipment; and
                            ``(ii) good samaritan immunity for cardiac 
                        arrest care providers; those involved with the 
                        instruction of the training programs; and 
                        owners and managers of property where equipment 
                        is placed.
                    ``(B) In the development of the model legislation, 
                there shall be consideration of requirements for 
                training in the core content and use of lifesaving 
                equipment for State licensure or credentialing of 
                health professionals or other licensed occupations or 
                employment of other individuals who may be defined as 
                cardiac arrest care providers under paragraph (3).
            ``(7) The development of a national database for reporting 
        and collecting information relating to the incidence of cardiac 
        arrest, the circumstances surrounding such arrests, the rate of 
        survival, the effect of age, and whether interventions, 
        including cardiac arrest care provider interventions, or other 
        aspects of the chain of survival, improve the rate of survival.
            ``(8) The publication of a biennial public report 
        summarizing progress in improving care to the cardiac arrest 
        patient.''.

SEC. 4. COMMISSION ON CARDIAC ARREST SURVIVAL.

    (a) Establishment.--There shall be established as an independent 
agency within the executive branch a commission to be known as the 
Commission on Cardiac Arrest Survival (in this section referred to as 
the ``Commission'').
    (b) Membership.--
            (1) In general.--The Commission shall be composed of 15 
        members appointed in accordance with paragraph (2), and the ex 
        offico members designated in paragraph (3).
            (2) Appointing officials; expertise requirements.--
                    (A) Of the members appointed to the Commission 
                pursuant to paragraph (1)--
                            (i) five shall be appointed by the 
                        President;
                            (ii) five shall be appointed by the 
                        President Pro Tempore of the Senate, after 
                        consultation with the Minority Leader of the 
                        Senate; and
                            (iii) five shall be appointed by the 
                        Speaker of the House of Representatives, after 
                        consultation with the Minority Leader of the 
                        House.
                    (B) The individuals appointed to the Commission 
                under subparagraph (A) shall collectively have 
                expertise and experience in the following areas: 
                Emergency medical care; pediatric emergency medicine; 
                cardiology; State and local emergency medical services; 
                delivery of State health services; public safety; 
                trauma; public buildings or governmental facilities 
                management; epidemiology; lifesaving equipment design 
                and manufacture; development of model State 
                legislation; human factors engineering; and 
                professional and public education. At least three of 
                the members shall be qualified by scientific training 
                and experience to evaluate the design or conduct of, 
                and data derived from, clinical and educational 
                research in the risks and benefits of resuscitative 
                modalities.
            (3) Ex officio members.--The membership of the Commission 
        shall include ex officio members from the following agencies: 
        The National Institutes of Health, Department of Health and 
        Human Services; the Department of Education; the National 
        Highway Traffic Safety Administration, Department of 
        Transportation; the General Services Administration; the 
        Department of Defense; and the Department of Justice.
    (c) Function of the Commission .--The Commission shall, in 
consultation with the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute, 
evaluate and provide recommendations on effective methods to increase 
survival from cardiac arrest. Such recommendations may include 
recommendations on implementation of this Act, further studies on 
emergency medical systems or other modalities for early intervention in 
the chain of survival, or further legislation to improve access to 
cardiac arrest survival modalities.
    (d) Reports and Recommendations.--Not later than 18 months after 
the date of the enactment of this Act, or during the interim when the 
Commission believes necessary, the Commission shall prepare and submit 
to the President and to the Congress a final report.
    (e) Administrative Powers of the Commission.--The Commission may 
hold hearings, sit and act at such times and places, take such 
testimony, and receive such evidence as the Commission considers 
advisable to carry out the purpose of this section. The Commission may 
secure directly from any Federal department or agency such information 
as the Commission considers necessary to carry out the provisions of 
this section.
    (f) Authorization of Appropriations.--There are authorized to be 
appropriated such sums as may be necessary to carry out the provisions 
of this section.
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