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(Circulation. 1995;92:149-151.)
© 1995 American Heart Association, Inc.

Articles

Congress Moves to Address Emergency Cardiac Care Issues

Richard S. Hamburg, MPA; Scott D. Ballin, JD

From the American Heart Association Office of Public Affairs, Washington, DC.

	Introduction

 
Over the past year, emergency cardiac care and related issues have increasingly moved to the forefront of debate in the Congress. Legislators are becoming more sensitized to emergency care issues.

In the May 1991 edition of Circulation, the American Heart Association (AHA) unveiled its "chain of survival" concept. The chain details the sequence of events needed to ensure that more people can survive sudden cardiac arrest. The links of the chain included early access to the emergency system, early cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR), early defibrillation, and early advanced cardiac life support.

In the article, the Emergency Cardiac Care Committee of the AHA set forth a series of recommendations to strengthen the chain of survival. Among the suggestions with public policy ramifications are the following: (1) all communities should implement an enhanced 911 system; (2) communities should adopt more widespread and effective targeted CPR programs; (3) communities should implement programs to establish dispatcher-assisted CPR; and (4) all communities should adopt the principle of early defibrillation, including making automatic external defibrillators (AEDs) available to first responders trained in their use.

	Chain of Survival Legislation

 
Legislation will soon be introduced, drafted in large part by the AHA, that would remove barriers to the "chain of survival" to increase the likelihood of people surviving sudden cardiac arrest.

The legislation, sponsored by Gerry E. Studds (D-10-MA), directs the Secretary of Health and Human Services to provide states with recommendations on a variety of issues, including lifesaving first aid and CPR training for 911 dispatchers, firefighters, teachers, and day-care providers. . . . [Full Text of this Article]

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