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July 24, 2025American Heart Association Applauds Governor’s Signing of Cardiac Emergency Response Plans
At the Buffalo Bills Training Camp at St. John Fisher University, Governor Kathy Hochul signed S.5585-A and A.785-A into law. This action will require comprehensive cardiac emergency response plans in all of New York’s public schools, school athletic facilities and events.
Last month, the Senate and Assembly unanimously passed both pieces of legislation. The bill, sponsored by state Sen. April N.M. Baskin and state Assemblymember Michaelle Solages, requires schools to create and practice a written plan to respond to cardiac emergencies on school grounds and for athletic venues and events.
The bill, known as Desha’s Law, is named in memory of Senator Baskin’s cousin Desha who went into cardiac arrest playing basketball in her middle school gym. According to Sen. Baskin, an AED was available in the school, but no one could locate the keys to open the unit.
The American Heart Association, devoted to changing the future to a world of healthier lives for all, is a founding member of the Smart Heart Sports Coalition established by the NFL in 2023. American Heart Association Heart Powered grassroots advocates worked alongside coalition members to push for this policy that will increase survival rates from cardiac arrests that happen outside of a hospital.
New York is the latest in a growing number of states nationwide that are moving to better prepare schools and school athletic programs to respond to cardiac arrests with the creation of cardiac emergency response plans. More than two dozen states have passed these laws, with several more expected to be signed by governors in the coming days.
Here in New York, more than 2.4 million students, 215,000 teachers and countless parents and community members rely on school facilities daily, making it essential that schools are prepared for cardiac emergencies.
More than 350,000 people experience cardiac arrest outside of a hospital in the United States each year. Currently, 10% of those people will survive, most likely because there were people nearby prepared to take action. CPR, if performed immediately, can double or triple a person’s chance of survival.
It is estimated that about 23,000 children under the age of 18 experience cardiac arrest outside of a hospital annually in this country. Of those cases, about 40% are sports-related. Whether in the classroom or on the playing field, having a plan in place to enable faculty, staff, and students to quickly and correctly respond to a cardiac emergency can save lives. In schools with AEDs, approximately 70% of children survive cardiac arrest – 7 times the overall survival rate for children.
“As our Nation of Lifesavers Ambassador Damar Hamlin and the entire Buffalo Bills organization knows, saving lives from sudden cardiac arrest depends on having a strong chain of survival across the emergency response system,” said American Heart Association CEO Nancy Brown. “Thank you to the elected officials in New York State and Governor Hochul for implementing evidence-based policies that will save lives among students and others who suffer sudden cardiac arrest at school. We are proud to be working with the NFL and the Smart Heart Sports Coalition across all states as we help bystanders become lifesavers.”
“This is a powerful next step in the CPR work the American Heart Association has done with the New York state Legislature,” said Kaweeda G. Adams, the American Heart Association’s advocacy ambassador in New York state and former superintendent of the Albany City School District. “We’ve made sure that there are AEDs in every public school in the state, and that everyone who graduates from a New York high school has learned Hands-Only CPR. We thank Gov. Hochul for signing this law, which will save lives.”
“As a mother of two children and Desha’s cousin, I want to assure parents, staff, and every student that I’m fighting for you if the unimaginable happens in your school,” Baskin said. “Requiring schools across New York to provide cardiac arrest training and a plan to access to their school’s Automated External Defibrillator (AED) will undoubtedly help children or others in the school with a life-threatening health crisis. Thank you to my partners in the state legislature and to Governor Hochul for signing this vital legislation into law today. May Desha’s memory save the lives of future student athletes and continue to live in all of our hearts forever.”
“Desha’s Law is a vital bill that will enable our schools to proactively plan and safeguard our student athletes,” Solages said. “This bill is about preparation, not panic, and about empowering health officials and athletic staff to save lives. We have seen how instances of cardiac arrest impact families from all backgrounds—whether on the national level or right here in our local school districts. I am ecstatic that we have passed this bill and appreciate the partnership of Senator April Baskin, the American Heart Association, and Governor Kathy Hochul.”
“I’m still here today because bystanders became my lifesavers when I had a sudden cardiac arrest at church, two years and one day ago,” Ann Furner of Whitesboro said. “As a retired teacher and survivor, I advocated for cardiac emergency response plans in schools because anyone there can be a lifesaver. The passage of this bill means that the busiest places in our communities – schools – will have a firm plan in place to respond to sudden cardiac arrests. I can’t think of a better gift on this anniversary than being told that the students and schools where I taught for 34 years will now be safer.”
“It’s been rewarding to train people in Hands-Only CPR, including during the ‘CPR Showdown’ between the Senate and Assembly this past April,” said Gabriel Lopez of Infinity Med in Albany, who regularly leads Hands-Only CPR trainings for the American Heart Association. “My life was saved because of CPR and I was glad to advocate for cardiac emergency response plans in schools. Having this law in place means we can change the statistic that only 1 in 10 people survive sudden cardiac arrest.”
“I would like to thank Governor Hochul for making the children of New York State a priority,” said Melinda Murray of Queens, founder of the Dominic A. Murray 21 Memorial Foundation, Inc., and a longtime advocate with the American Heart Association. “My son Dominic was 17 and playing basketball at school when he suffered a sudden cardiac arrest. No one knew what to do. By the time emergency responders arrived to help it was too late. The signing of the Cardiac Emergency Response Plan is a critical step in prevention. Lives will be saved.“
“Thank you to Governor Kathy Hochul for passing the Cardiac Emergency Response Plans (CERPs) in schools law,” said Karen Acompora of Long Island, for whose son Louis’ Law was named. Acompora founded the Louis J. Acompora Memorial Foundation and is part of Heart Screen New York and Parent Heart Watch. “The Cardiac Emergency Response plans can significantly strengthen Louis’ Law and improve outcomes during sudden cardiac events.”
Find out more information on CERPs on the American Heart Association’s website.
