Committee backs bill to adopt national guidelines for AED placement and maintenance in schools

The House Education Committee unanimously advanced Senate Bill 191 on Monday, endorsing a change that would require schools to follow nationally recognized guidelines for placement, storage and maintenance of automated external defibrillators (AEDs).

Sponsors and witnesses said AEDs save lives when they are accessible and maintained. The committee approved the bill by roll call and sent it to the Committee of the Whole with a favorable recommendation.

Representative Rob Lukens, the bill’s sponsor in the House, described the amended measure as aligning school practice with current American Heart Association guidance — ensuring AEDs are clearly marked, unlocked and reachable within minutes during a cardiac emergency. “More than 23,000 children under the age 18 experience cardiac arrest outside of a hospital each year. In schools with AEDs approximately 70 percent of children survive…