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HB 5423

AN ACT RELATING TO EDUCATION -- HEALTH AND SAFETY OF PUPILS

2025 Regular Session Introduced by Nathan Biah and 8 co-sponsors

Rhode Island schools must have functional AEDs, integrated cardiac emergency plans with EMS, trained staff, and regular drills to improve survival from sudden cardiac arrest.

03/18/2025 Committee recommended measure be held for further study
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Bill Summary · HB 5423

Bill Summary — HB 5423

Title: AN ACT RELATING TO EDUCATION — HEALTH AND SAFETY OF PUPILS
Statute amended: R.I. Gen. Laws § 16-21-33.1
Introduced by: Reps. Noret, Casimiro, Read, Shallcross Smith, Messier, Serpa, O'Brien, Biah, and Finkelman
Introduced: February 12, 2025 (filed March 14, 2025)
Current status: Committee recommended measure be held for further study (03/18/2025)

Purpose

The bill mandates automated external defibrillators (AEDs) and formal cardiac emergency response planning in Rhode Island schools to improve survival from sudden cardiac arrest (SCA). It updates existing law to require AED availability, staff training, AED maintenance, and school-specific cardiac emergency response plans integrated with local emergency medical services (EMS).

Key provisions

  • Definitions: Establishes terms including AED, cardiac emergency response plan (CERP), athletic emergency action plan (AEAP), and sudden cardiac arrest (SCA).
  • AED requirements:
    • All public and private elementary, middle, and high schools must provide and maintain on-site functional AEDs in types and quantities determined by the Commissioner of Education (in consultation with the Director of Health) consistent with American Heart Association (AHA) or similar guidelines.
    • AEDs must be clearly marked, unlocked, and accessible so a person experiencing SCA can be placed on an AED within three (3) minutes.
    • AEDs must be tested and maintained per manufacturer guidelines; schools must notify appropriate EMS providers about AED type and location.
  • Cardiac Emergency Response Plans (CERPs):
    • High schools and middle schools: develop CERPs beginning in the 2026–2027 school year.
    • Elementary schools: develop CERPs beginning in the 2027–2028 school year.
    • CERPs must integrate with local EMS and include core elements such as: voluntary cardiac response teams, activation procedures, AED placement/maintenance, dissemination, CPR/AED training, annual drills, and ongoing review.
  • Athletics-specific planning:
    • Beginning 2026–2027, middle and high schools with athletic programs must develop venue-specific CERPs or AEAPs aligned with national recommendations; plans must be rehearsed annually.
    • An AED must be accessible during the school day and at all school-sponsored athletic events and practices.
  • Training:
    • Schools must ensure at least one person trained in CPR and AED operation is present whenever school facilities are used for school-sponsored curricular/extracurricular activities or athletic contests. Training may be provided by qualified personnel, including municipal fire and police.
    • CERP determines which staff receive first-aid, CPR, and AED training (examples include coaches, nurses, athletic trainers).

Who is affected

  • Public and private K–12 schools, school administrators, coaches, school nurses, athletic trainers, students, local EMS providers, and school boards. Indirectly affects parents and community members who use school facilities.

Implementation details & fiscal considerations

  • The Commissioner of Education (with the Director of Health) will set AED quantity/type guidelines consistent with AHA or equivalent standards.
  • The bill notes AEDs are relatively inexpensive and identifies grants as a funding source but does not appropriate state funding. Costs for AED acquisition, training, maintenance, and planning will fall primarily on school districts unless external grants are secured.

Legislative status & next steps

  • Referred to House Education (02/12/2025). Filed and read (March 2025). On 03/18/2025, the committee recommended holding the measure for further study — the bill was not advanced out of committee at that time.

Notes: Some text in the legislative version was truncated; the summary reflects all explicit requirements contained in the provided text.

Compiled from official sources — confirm details with the bill’s official record.

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