H. R. 6829 

One Hundred Eighteenth Congress 

of the 

United States of America 

AT THE SECOND SESSION 

Begun and held at the City of Washington on Wednesday, 

the third day of January, two thousand and twenty-four 

An Act 

To amend the Public Health Service Act to authorize and support the creation 

and dissemination of cardiomyopathy education, awareness, and risk assessment 

materials and resources to identify more at-risk families, to authorize research 

and surveillance activities relating to cardiomyopathy, 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 ‘‘Cardiomyopathy Health Education, Awareness, and Research, and AED Training in the Schools 

Act of 2024’’ or the ‘‘HEARTS Act of 2024’’. 

SEC. 2. CARDIOMYOPATHY HEALTH EDUCATION, AWARENESS, AND 

RESEARCH, AND AED TRAINING IN SCHOOLS. 

(a) AMENDMENT.—The Public Health Service Act is amended 

by inserting after section 312 (42 U.S.C. 244) the following: 

‘‘SEC. 312A. MATERIALS AND RESOURCES TO INCREASE EDUCATION 

AND AWARENESS OF CARDIOMYOPATHY AMONG SCHOOL 

ADMINISTRATORS, EDUCATORS, AND FAMILIES. 

‘‘(a) MATERIALS AND RESOURCES.—Not later than 18 months 

after the date of the enactment of the HEARTS Act of 2024, the 

Secretary, in consultation with the Director of the Centers for 

Disease Control and Prevention, shall develop public education 

materials and resources to be disseminated to school administrators, 

educators, school health professionals, coaches, families, guardians, 

caregivers, and other appropriate individuals. The materials and 

resources shall include— 

‘‘(1) information on the signs, symptoms, and risk factors 

associated with high-risk cardiac conditions and genetic heart 

rhythm abnormalities that may cause sudden cardiac arrest 

in children, adolescents, and young adults, including— 

‘‘(A) cardiomyopathy; 

‘‘(B) long QT syndrome, Brugada syndrome, 

catecholaminergic polymorphic ventricular tachycardia, 

short QT syndrome, and Wolff-Parkinson-White syndrome; 

and 

‘‘(C) other high-risk cardiac conditions, as determined 

by the Secretary; 

‘‘(2) guidelines regarding the placement of automated 

external defibrillators in schools, early childhood education programs, and child care centers; 

‘‘(3) training information on automated external 

defibrillators and cardiopulmonary resuscitation; and 
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‘‘(4) recommendations for how schools, early childhood education programs, and child care centers can develop and implement a cardiac emergency response plan. 

‘‘(b) DISSEMINATION OF MATERIALS AND RESOURCES.—Not later 

than 30 months after the date of the enactment of the HEARTS 

Act of 2024, the Secretary shall disseminate the materials and 

resources developed under subsection (a) in accordance with the 

following: 

‘‘(1) DISTRIBUTION BY STATE EDUCATIONAL AGENCIES.—The 

Secretary shall make available such materials and resources 

to State educational agencies to distribute— 

‘‘(A) to school administrators, educators, school health 

professionals, coaches, families, guardians, caregivers, and 

other appropriate individuals, the information developed 

under subsection (a)(1); 

‘‘(B) to parents, guardians, or other caregivers, the 

cardiomyopathy risk assessment developed pursuant to section 312B(b)(1); and 

‘‘(C) to school administrators, educators, school health 

professionals, and coaches— 

‘‘(i) the guidelines described in subsection (a)(2); 

‘‘(ii) the training information described in subsection (a)(3); and 

‘‘(iii) the recommendations described in subsection 

(a)(4). 

‘‘(2) DISSEMINATION TO HEALTH DEPARTMENTS AND PROFESSIONALS.—The Secretary shall make available the materials 

and resources developed under subsection (a) to State and 

local health departments, pediatricians, hospitals, and other 

health professionals, such as nurses and first responders. 

‘‘(3) POSTING ON WEBSITE.— 

‘‘(A) CDC.— 

‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary, through the 

Director, shall post the materials and resources developed under subsection (a) on the public Internet 

website of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. 

‘‘(ii) ADDITIONAL INFORMATION.—The Director is 

encouraged to maintain on such public Internet website 

such additional information regarding cardiomyopathy 

as deemed appropriate by the Director. 

‘‘(B) STATE EDUCATIONAL AGENCIES.—State educational 

agencies are encouraged to create public Internet webpages 

dedicated to cardiomyopathy and post the materials and 

resources developed under subsection (a) on such webpages. 

‘‘(c) DEFINITIONS.—In this section: 

‘‘(1) The term ‘cardiomyopathy’ means a heart disease that 

affects the heart’s muscle (myocardium)— 

‘‘(A) the symptoms of which may vary from case to 

case, including— 

‘‘(i) cases in which no symptoms are present 

(asymptomatic); and 

‘‘(ii) cases in which there are symptoms of a 

progressive condition that may result from an impaired 

ability of the heart to pump blood, such as fatigue, 

irregular heartbeats (arrhythmia), heart failure, and, 

potentially, sudden cardiac death; and 
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‘‘(B) the recognized types of which include dilated, 

hypertrophic, restrictive, arrhythmogenic right ventricular 

dysplasia, and left ventricular non-compaction. 

‘‘(2) The term ‘Director’ means the Director of the Centers 

for Disease Control and Prevention. 

‘‘(3) The terms ‘early childhood education program’, 

‘elementary school’, and ‘secondary school’ have the meanings 

given to those terms in section 8101 of the Elementary and 

Secondary Education Act of 1965. 

‘‘(4) The term ‘school administrator’ means a principal, 

director, manager, or other supervisor or leader within an 

elementary school, secondary school, State-based early childhood education program, or child care center. 

‘‘(5) The term ‘school health professional’ means a health 

professional serving at an elementary school, secondary school, 

State-based early childhood education program, or child care 

center. 

‘‘SEC. 312B. ACTIVITIES RELATING TO CARDIOMYOPATHY. 

‘‘(a) REPORT ON CDC NATIONAL CARDIOMYOPATHY ACTIVITIES.— 

‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 18 months after the date 

of the enactment of the HEARTS Act of 2024, the Secretary, 

acting through the Director of the Centers for Disease Control 

and Prevention, shall submit to Congress a report on findings 

generated from existing activities conducted by the Centers 

for Disease Control and Prevention to improve the understanding of the prevalence and epidemiology of cardiomyopathy 

across the lifespan, from birth to adulthood, with particular 

interest in the following: 

‘‘(A) The natural history of individuals with cardiomyopathy, in both the pediatric and adult population. 

‘‘(B) Estimates of cardiomyopathy-related emergency 

department visits and hospitalizations, in both the pediatric 

and adult population. 

‘‘(2) PUBLIC ACCESS.—Subject to paragraph (3), the report 

submitted under this subsection shall be made available to 

the public. 

‘‘(3) PRIVACY PROTECTIONS.—The Secretary shall ensure 

that this subsection is carried out in a manner that complies 

with all applicable privacy laws under Federal and State law. 

‘‘(b) IMPROVING RISK ASSESSMENTS FOR INDIVIDUALS WITH

CARDIOMYOPATHY.— 

‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall develop and make 

publicly available a cardiomyopathy risk assessment for health 

care providers and individuals. Such risk assessment shall, 

at a minimum, include the following: 

‘‘(A) Background information on the prevalence, 

incidence, and health impact of cardiomyopathy, including 

all forms of cardiomyopathy and their effects on pediatric, 

adolescent, and adult individuals. 

‘‘(B) A worksheet with variables and conditions for 

an individual or health care provider to use in assessing 

whether an individual is at risk for cardiomyopathy. 

‘‘(C) A worksheet with variables and stages of progression for an individual or health care provider to use in 

assessing whether and to what extent cardiomyopathy has 

progressed in an individual. 
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‘‘(D) Guidelines on cardiomyopathy screenings for 

individuals who are at risk for, or have a family history 

of, cardiomyopathy. 

‘‘(2) STAKEHOLDER INPUT.—In carrying out paragraph (1), 

the Director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention 

shall seek input from external stakeholders including— 

‘‘(A) representatives from national patient advocacy 

organizations expert in all forms of cardiomyopathy; 

‘‘(B) representatives from medical professional societies 

that specialize in the care of adults and pediatrics with 

cardiomyopathy; and 

‘‘(C) representatives from other relevant Federal agencies. 

‘‘(c) DEFINITION.—In this section, the term ‘cardiomyopathy’ 

has the meaning given to such term in section 312A. 

‘‘SEC. 312C. CARDIOMYOPATHY RESEARCH. 

‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary, in consultation with the 

Director of the National Institutes of Health, may expand and 

coordinate research and related activities of the National Institutes 

of Health with respect to cardiomyopathy, which may include 

research with respect to— 

‘‘(1) causation of cardiomyopathy, including genetic causes 

and molecular biomarkers; 

‘‘(2) long-term health outcomes in individuals with cardiomyopathy, including infants, children, teenagers, adults, and 

elderly individuals; and 

‘‘(3) studies using longitudinal data and retrospective analysis to identify effective treatments and outcomes for individuals with cardiomyopathy. 

‘‘(b) NONDUPLICATION.—The Secretary shall ensure that any 

research and activities related to cardiomyopathy under this section 

do not unnecessarily duplicate activities, programs, or efforts of 

other agencies and offices within the Department of Health and 

Human Services. 

‘‘(c) NIH REPORT.—Not later than 18 months after the date 

of the enactment of the HEARTS Act of 2024, the Secretary, in 

consultation with the Director of the National Institutes of Health, 

shall submit to Congress a report— 

‘‘(1) outlining the ongoing research efforts of the National 

Institutes of Health regarding cardiomyopathy; and 

‘‘(2) identifying— 

‘‘(A) a research agenda regarding adult forms of cardiomyopathy; 

‘‘(B) plans for researching cardiomyopathy affecting the 

pediatric population; and 

‘‘(C) the areas of greatest need for such research. 

‘‘(d) CARDIOMYOPATHY DEFINED.—In this section, the term 

‘cardiomyopathy’ has the meaning given to such term in section 

312A. 

‘‘SEC. 312D. PROMOTING STUDENT ACCESS TO AEDS AND CPR. 

‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary may award grants to eligible 

entities to develop and implement a comprehensive program to 

promote student access to automated external defibrillators (in 

this section referred to as ‘AEDs’) and cardiopulmonary resuscitation (in this section referred to as ‘CPR’) in public elementary 

schools and secondary schools. 
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‘‘(b) USE OF FUNDS.—An eligible entity receiving a grant under 

subsection (a) may use funds received through such grant to carry 

out any of the following activities: 

‘‘(1) Developing and providing comprehensive materials to 

establish AED and CPR programs in public elementary schools 

and secondary schools. 

‘‘(2) Providing support for CPR and AED training programs 

in such schools for students, staff, and related sports volunteers. 

‘‘(3) Providing support for developing a cardiac emergency 

response plan within such schools. 

‘‘(4) Purchasing AEDs that have been approved under section 515 of the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act, cleared 

under section 510(k) of such Act, or classified under section 

513(f)(2) of such Act. 

‘‘(5) Purchasing necessary AED batteries and performing 

necessary AED maintenance (such as by replacing AED pads) 

in accordance with the labeling of the AED involved. 

‘‘(6) Replacing old and outdated AED and CPR equipment, 

machinery, and educational materials. 

‘‘(c) ELIGIBILITY; APPLICATION.—To be eligible for a grant under 

subsection (a), an entity shall— 

‘‘(1) be a local educational agency (including a public 

charter school operating as a local educational agency under 

State law), in consultation with a qualified health care entity; 

and 

‘‘(2) submit to the Secretary an application at such time, 

in such manner, and containing such information as the Secretary may reasonably require. 

‘‘(d) DEFINITIONS.—In this section: 

‘‘(1) ESEA TERMS.—The terms ‘elementary school’, ‘local 

educational agency’, and ‘secondary school’ have the meanings 

given such terms in section 8101 of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965. 

‘‘(2) QUALIFIED HEALTH CARE ENTITY.—The term ‘qualified 

health care entity’ means a health care entity that— 

‘‘(A) is— 

‘‘(i) a public entity; or 

‘‘(ii) an organization that is described in section 

501(c) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 and 

exempt from taxation under section 501(a) of such 

Code; 

‘‘(B) demonstrates an ability to develop, train, and 

implement a comprehensive program to promote student 

access to defibrillation in public elementary and secondary 

schools; and 

‘‘(C) is qualified in providing technical assistance in 

AED and CPR training.’’. 

(b) NO ADDITIONAL FUNDS.—No additional funds are authorized 

to be appropriated to carry out sections 312A, 312B, 312C, and 
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312D of the Public Health Service Act, as inserted by subsection 

(a). 

Speaker of the House of Representatives. 

Vice President of the United States and

President of the Senate.