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 Edu-
cation, 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 pro-
grams, and child care centers; 
‘‘(3) 
training 
information 
on 
automated 
external 
defibrillators and cardiopulmonary resuscitation; and
H. R. 6829—2 
‘‘(4) recommendations for how schools, early childhood edu-
cation programs, and child care centers can develop and imple-
ment 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 sec-
tion 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 sub-
section (a)(3); and 
‘‘(iii) the recommendations described in subsection 
(a)(4). 
‘‘(2) DISSEMINATION TO HEALTH DEPARTMENTS AND PROFES-
SIONALS.—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 devel-
oped under subsection (a) on the public Internet 
website of the Centers for Disease Control and Preven-
tion. 
‘‘(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
H. R. 6829—3 
‘‘(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 child-
hood 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 under-
standing 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 cardio-
myopathy, 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 progres-
sion for an individual or health care provider to use in 
assessing whether and to what extent cardiomyopathy has 
progressed in an individual.
H. R. 6829—4 
‘‘(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 agen-
cies. 
‘‘(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 cardio-
myopathy, including infants, children, teenagers, adults, and 
elderly individuals; and 
‘‘(3) studies using longitudinal data and retrospective anal-
ysis to identify effective treatments and outcomes for individ-
uals 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 cardio-
myopathy; 
‘‘(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 resuscita-
tion (in this section referred to as ‘CPR’) in public elementary 
schools and secondary schools.
H. R. 6829—5 
‘‘(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 sec-
tion 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 Sec-
retary 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 Sec-
ondary 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
H. R. 6829—6 
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.