Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis’ final approval of legislation on Monday will now require high school students to go through CPR training to graduate. House Bill 157 will go into effect on July 1.
The Senate version of the bill states that cardiac arrest is the leading cause of death on school campuses and is also the leading cause of death to student-athletes, pushing for the practice to be taught even more so. The American Heart Associates also says that one in five victims of fatal cardiac arrests could be saved if the bystanders had known CPR and been able to give it.
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School districts will now be required to provide basic training in first aid and CPR for students when they are in ninth and 11th grades under the new law. The bill will also encourage districts to provide the same training for students in grades six and eight.
16-year-old Lexi Sima was 16 when she survived a cardiac attack. Since then, her father Shawn Sima has worked for four years to get the bill to pass, according to 4WWL.
"It's going to be a game-changer,” Sima said. “We don't have to stand by our loved ones, or somebody else's loved ones die."