I
107TH CONGRESS
1ST SESSION
H. R. 3462
To amend the Public Health Service Act to provide grants for public access
defibrillation programs and public access defibrillation demonstration
projects, and for other purposes.
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
DECEMBER 12, 2001
Mrs. CAPPS (for herself, Mr. SHIMKUS, Mr. WAXMAN, Mr. PICKERING, Ms.
ESHOO, Mrs. MORELLA, Mr. SHOWS, Mr. PLATTS, Mr. RUSH, Mr.
MCGOVERN, Ms. LEE, Ms. WATSON of California, Mr. HOLT, Mr. STARK,
Mr. FILNER, and Mr. LANTOS) introduced the following bill; which was
referred to the Committee on Energy and Commerce
A BILL
To amend the Public Health Service Act to provide grants
for public access defibrillation programs and public ac-
cess defibrillation demonstration projects, and for other
purposes.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Community Access to
Emergency Defibrillation Act of 2001’’.
SEC. 2. FINDINGS.
Congress makes the following findings:
(1) Over 220,000 Americans die each year from
cardiac arrest. Every 2 minutes, an individual goes
into cardiac arrest in the United States.
(2) The chance of successfully returning to a
normal heart rhythm diminishes by 10 percent each
minute following sudden cardiac arrest.
(3) Eighty percent of cardiac arrests are caused
by ventricular fibrillation, for which defibrillation is
the only effective treatment.
(4) Sixty percent of all cardiac arrests occur
outside the hospital. The average national survival
rate for out-of-hospital cardiac arrest is only 5 per-
cent.
(5) Communities that have established and im-
plemented public access defibrillation programs have
achieved average survival rates for out-of-hospital
cardiac arrest as high as 50 percent.
(6) According to the American Heart Associa-
tion, wide use of defibrillators could save as many as
50,000 lives nationally each year.
(7) Successful public access defibrillation pro-
grams ensure that cardiac arrest victims have access
to early 911 notification, early cardiopulmonary re-
suscitation, early defibrillation, and early advanced
care.
SEC. 3. PUBLIC ACCESS DEFIBRILLATION PROGRAMS AND
PROJECTS.
Part B of title III of the Public Health Service Act
(42 U.S.C. 243 et seq.), as amended by Public Law 106–
310, is amended by adding after section 311 the following:
‘‘SEC. 312. PUBLIC ACCESS DEFIBRILLATION PROGRAMS.
‘‘(a) IN
GENERAL.—The Secretary shall award
grants to States, political subdivisions of States, Indian
tribes, and tribal organizations to develop and implement
public access defibrillation programs—
‘‘(1) by training and equipping local emergency
medical services personnel, including firefighters, po-
lice officers, paramedics, emergency medical techni-
cians, and other first responders, to administer im-
mediate care, including cardiopulmonary resuscita-
tion and automated external defibrillation, to cardiac
arrest victims;
‘‘(2) 
by 
purchasing 
automated 
external
defibrillators, placing the defibrillators in public
places where cardiac arrests are likely to occur, and
training personnel in such places to administer
cardiopulmonary resuscitation and automated exter-
nal defibrillation to cardiac arrest victims;
‘‘(3) by setting procedures for proper mainte-
nance and testing of such devices, according to the
guidelines of the manufacturers of the devices;
‘‘(4) by providing training to members of the
public in cardiopulmonary resuscitation and auto-
mated external defibrillation;
‘‘(5) by integrating the emergency medical serv-
ices system with the public access defibrillation pro-
grams so that emergency medical services personnel,
including dispatchers, are informed about the loca-
tion of automated external defibrillators in their
community; and
‘‘(6) by encouraging private companies, includ-
ing small businesses, to purchase automated external
defibrillators and provide training for their employ-
ees to administer cardiopulmonary resuscitation and
external automated defibrillation to cardiac arrest
victims in their community.
‘‘(b) PREFERENCE.—In awarding grants under sub-
section (a), the Secretary shall give a preference to a
State, political subdivision of a State, Indian tribe, or trib-
al organization that—
‘‘(1) has a particularly low local survival rate
for cardiac arrests, or a particularly low local re-
sponse rate for cardiac arrest victims; or
‘‘(2) demonstrates in its application the great-
est commitment to establishing and maintaining a
public access defibrillation program.
‘‘(c) USE OF FUNDS.—A State, political subdivision
of a State, Indian tribe, or tribal organization that receives
a grant under subsection (a) may use funds received
through such grant to—
‘‘(1) purchase automated external defibrillators
that have been approved, or cleared for marketing,
by the Food and Drug Administration;
‘‘(2) provide automated external defibrillation
and basic life support training in automated external
defibrillator usage through nationally recognized
courses;
‘‘(3) provide information to community mem-
bers about the public access defibrillation program
to be funded with the grant;
‘‘(4) provide information to the local emergency
medical services system regarding the placement of
automated external defibrillators in public places;
‘‘(5) produce such materials as may be nec-
essary to encourage private companies, including
small businesses, to purchase automated external
defibrillators; and
‘‘(6) carry out other activities that the Sec-
retary determines are necessary or useful to pursue
the purposes of this section.
‘‘(d) APPLICATION.—
‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—To be eligible to receive a
grant under subsection (a), a State, political subdivi-
sion of a State, Indian tribe, or tribal organization
shall prepare and submit an application to the Sec-
retary at such time, in such manner, and containing
such information as the Secretary may reasonably
require.
‘‘(2) CONTENTS.—An application submitted
under paragraph (1) shall—
‘‘(A) describe the comprehensive public ac-
cess defibrillation program to be funded with
the grant and demonstrate how such program
would make automated external defibrillation
accessible and available to cardiac arrest vic-
tims in the community;
‘‘(B) contain procedures for implementing
appropriate 
nationally 
recognized 
training
courses in performing cardiopulmonary resus-
citation and the use of automated external
defibrillators;
‘‘(C) contain procedures for ensuring direct
involvement of a licensed medical professional
and coordination with the local emergency med-
ical services system in the oversight of training
and notification of incidents of the use of the
automated external defibrillators;
‘‘(D) contain procedures for proper main-
tenance and testing of the automated external
defibrillators, according to the labeling of the
manufacturer;
‘‘(E) contain procedures for ensuring noti-
fication of local emergency medical services sys-
tem personnel, including dispatchers, of the lo-
cation and type of devices used in the public ac-
cess defibrillation program; and
‘‘(F) provide for the collection of data re-
garding the effectiveness of the public access
defibrillation program to be funded with the
grant in affecting the out-of-hospital cardiac ar-
rest survival rate.
‘‘(e) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There
is authorized to be appropriated to carry out this section
$50,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2002 through 2007.
Not more than 10 percent of amounts received under a
grant awarded under this section may be used for adminis-
trative expenses.
‘‘SEC. 313. PUBLIC ACCESS DEFIBRILLATION DEMONSTRA-
TION PROJECTS.
‘‘(a) IN
GENERAL.—The Secretary shall award
grants to political subdivisions of States, Indian tribes,
and tribal organizations to develop and implement innova-
tive, comprehensive, community-based public access
defibrillation demonstration projects that—
‘‘(1) provide cardiopulmonary resuscitation and
automated external defibrillation to cardiac arrest
victims in unique settings;
‘‘(2) provide training to community members in
cardiopulmonary resuscitation and automated exter-
nal defibrillation; and
‘‘(3) maximize community access to automated
external defibrillators.
‘‘(b) USE OF FUNDS.—A recipient of a grant under
subsection (a) shall use the funds provided through the
grant to—
‘‘(1) purchase automated external defibrillators
that have been approved, or cleared for marketing,
by the Food and Drug Administration;
‘‘(2) provide basic life training in automated ex-
ternal defibrillator usage through nationally recog-
nized courses;
‘‘(3) provide information to community mem-
bers about the public access defibrillation dem-
onstration project to be funded with the grant;
‘‘(4) provide information to the local emergency
medical services system regarding the placement of
automated external defibrillators in the unique set-
tings; and
‘‘(5) carry out other activities that the Sec-
retary determines are necessary or useful to pursue
the purposes of this section.
‘‘(c) APPLICATION.—
‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—To be eligible to receive a
grant under subsection (a), a political subdivision of
a State, Indian tribe, or tribal organization shall
prepare and submit an application to the Secretary
at such time, in such manner, and containing such
information as the Secretary may reasonably re-
quire.
‘‘(2) CONTENTS.—An application submitted
under paragraph (1) may—
‘‘(A) describe the innovative, comprehen-
sive, 
community-based 
public 
access
defibrillation demonstration project to be fund-
ed with the grant;
‘‘(B) explain how such public access
defibrillation demonstration project represents
innovation in providing public access to auto-
mated external defibrillation; and
‘‘(C) provide for the collection of data re-
garding the effectiveness of the demonstration
project to be funded with the grant in—
‘‘(i) 
providing 
emergency
cardiopulmonary resuscitation and auto-
mated external defibrillation to cardiac ar-
rest victims in the setting served by the
demonstration project; and
‘‘(ii) affecting the cardiac arrest sur-
vival rate in the setting served by the dem-
onstration project.
‘‘(d) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There
is authorized to be appropriated to carry out this section
$5,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2002 through 2007.
Not more than 10 percent of amounts received under a
grant awarded under this section may be used for adminis-
trative expenses.’’.
‘‘SEC. 313A. GRANTS FOR ACCESS TO DEFIBRILLATION.
‘‘(a) PROGRAM
AUTHORIZED.—The Secretary of
Health and Human Services shall award a grant to a
health care organization to establish a national informa-
tion clearinghouse that provides information to increase
public access to defibrillation in schools.
‘‘(b) DUTIES.—The health care organization that re-
ceives a grant under this section shall promote public ac-
cess to defibrillation in schools by—
‘‘(1) providing timely information to entities re-
garding public access defibrillation program imple-
mentation and development;
‘‘(2) developing and providing comprehensive
program materials to establish a public access
defibrillation program in schools;
‘‘(3) providing support to CPR and AED train-
ing programs;
‘‘(4) fostering new and existing community
partnerships with and among public and private or-
ganizations (such as local educational agencies, non-
profit organizations, public health organizations,
emergency medical service providers, fire and police
departments, and parent-teacher associations) to
promote public access to defibrillation in schools;
‘‘(5) establishing a data base to gather informa-
tion in a central location regarding sudden cardiac
arrest in the pediatric population and identifying or
conducting further research into the problem; and
‘‘(6) providing assistance to communities that
wish to develop screening programs for at risk
youth.
‘‘(c) APPLICATION.—A health care organization de-
siring a grant under this section shall submit an applica-
tion to the Secretary at such time, in such manner, and
accompanied by such information as the Secretary may
reasonably require.
‘‘(d) REPORT.—Not later than 5 years after the date
on which the health care organization receives a grant
under this section, such organization shall submit to the
Secretary of Health and Human Services a report that
describes activities carried out with funds received under
this section. Not later than 3 months after the date on
which such report is received by the Secretary of Health
and Human Services, the Secretary shall prepare and sub-
mit to the appropriate committees of Congress an evalua-
tion that reviews such report and evaluates the success
of such clearinghouse.
‘‘(e) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—From
funds authorized to be appropriated for fiscal years 2002
through 2006 for activities and programs under the De-
partment of Health and Human Services, $800,000 of
such funds may be appropriated to carry out the programs
described in this section for each of the fiscal years 2002
through 2006.’’.
Æ