When I became a member of the state assembly in January 2001, I came in with a long list of bills I wanted to craft based on 15 years of service with the county legislature.
One of the first bills I introduced was to require schools to have defibrillators on site in case of cardiac arrest for a student, staffer or a member of the public. It was the first of its kind and eventually led to legislation that became the law of the land.
But a short time ago, a terrible tragedy occurred when a 12-year-old in a school went into cardiac arrest, and the staff was unable to locate the key to unlock the box where the defibrillator was held. That student died.
It’s not known if access through the pads would have saved the person‘s life, but it’s a travesty that they never had the opportunity.
As a result, new legislation was just signed by Governor Hochul that will require staff to be educated on not only the use of the defibrillator, but its storage and the ability to retrieve it quickly and effectively. It seems like common sense, but if it takes this law to avoid another tragedy like this in the future, it’s well worth it.