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[Congressional Bills 110th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. Res. 530 Introduced in Senate (IS)]

110th CONGRESS
  2d Session
S. RES. 530

 Designating the week beginning October 5, 2008, as ``National Sudden 
                    Cardiac Arrest Awareness Week''.

_______________________________________________________________________

                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                             April 24, 2008

    Mr. Dorgan (for himself and Mr. Crapo) submitted the following 
    resolution; which was referred to the Committee on the Judiciary

_______________________________________________________________________

                               RESOLUTION

 
 Designating the week beginning October 5, 2008, as ``National Sudden 
                    Cardiac Arrest Awareness Week''.

Whereas sudden cardiac arrest is a leading cause of death in the United States;
Whereas sudden cardiac takes the lives of more than 250,000 people in the United 
        States each year, according to the Heart Rhythm Society;
Whereas anyone can experience sudden cardiac arrest, including infants, high 
        school athletes, and people in their 30s and 40s who have no sign of 
        heart disease;
Whereas sudden cardiac arrest is extremely deadly, with the National Heart, 
        Lung, and Blood Institute giving it a mortality rate of approximately 95 
        percent;
Whereas, to have a chance of surviving an attack, the American Heart Association 
        states that victims of sudden cardiac arrest must receive a lifesaving 
        defibrillation within the first 4 to 6 minutes of an attack;
Whereas, for every minute that passes without a shock from an automated external 
        defibrillator, the chance of survival decreases by approximately 10 
        percent;
Whereas lifesaving treatments for sudden cardiac arrest are effective if they 
        can be administered in time;
Whereas, according to joint research by the American College of Cardiology and 
        the American Heart Association, implantable cardioverter defibrillators 
        are 98 percent effective at protecting those at risk for sudden cardiac 
        arrest;
Whereas, according to the American Heart Association, cardiopulmonary 
        resuscitation and early defibrillation with an automated external 
        defibrillator more than double a victim's chances of survival;
Whereas the Yale-New Haven Hospital and the New England Journal of Medicine 
        state that women and African-Americans are at a higher risk than the 
        general population of dying as a result of sudden cardiac arrest, yet 
        this fact is not well known to those at risk;
Whereas there is a need for comprehensive educational efforts designed to 
        increase awareness of sudden cardiac arrest and related therapies among 
        medical professionals and the greater public in order to promote early 
        detection and proper treatment of this disease and to improve quality of 
        life; and
Whereas early October is an appropriate time to observe National Sudden Cardiac 
        Awareness Week: Now, therefore, be it
    Resolved, That the Senate--
            (1) designates the week beginning October 5, 2008, as 
        ``National Sudden Cardiac Arrest Awareness Week'';
            (2) supports--
                    (A) the goals and ideals of National Sudden Cardiac 
                Arrest Awareness Week; and
                    (B) efforts to educate people about sudden cardiac 
                arrest and to raise awareness about the risk of sudden 
                cardiac arrest, identifying warning signs, and the need 
                to seek medical attention in a timely manner;
            (3) acknowledges the critical importance of sudden cardiac 
        arrest awareness to improving national cardiovascular health; 
        and
            (4) calls upon the people of the United States to observe 
        this week with appropriate programs and activities.
                                 <all>
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