COLUMBUS, Ohio — Automated external defibrillators will soon be required at all public and charter schools, as well as most municipal sports and recreation facilities in Ohio, under legislation set to be signed into law Tuesday.
Gov. Mike DeWine is scheduled to hold a signing ceremony in suburban Columbus on Tuesday afternoon for House Bill 47, which passed the legislature with bipartisan support late last month, according to a release.
AEDs can help people in cardiac arrest by analyzing their heart rate and delivering electric shocks through the chest, returning heart rhythms to normal.
State Rep. Richard Brown, a Democrat from suburban Columbus who cosponsored HB47, said in written legislative testimony that the bill is a “crucial, commonsense” measure.
“The question is not about if a student may experience sudden cardiac arrest — the question is when,” Brown stated. “By passing this legislation, we are going to save lives of students across the state.”
Currently, Ohio schools are encouraged, but not required, to have AEDs, though Ohio law requires public high schools to instruct all students in how to use the devices.
“Why mandate the training if the device is not required to be placed in the school?” Brown asked.
Brown stated that AEDs that are FDA approved – the ones schools are most likely to use – cost somewhere between $1,250 and $1,500 per unit. Batteries for AEDs last about seven years, he added, and electrode pads need to be replaced every two years on average for about $50-$100 each.
However, he said, most schools already have AEDs in place.
The Ohio Municipal League testified against HB47 while it was in the legislature, arguing that it would create an unfunded mandate for schools and local governments. The OML asked lawmakers to appropriate state funding to pay for AEDs, but the final bill didn’t contain any such money.
HB47 will take effect 90 days after DeWine signs it into law – the usual waiting period laid out in the Ohio Constitution.
