Winner of Annual Bill-Writing Contest
Senator Tina Polsky (D- Boca Raton) and Representative Kelly Skidmore (D-Boca Raton) filed SB 1506 and HB 1009, which require that hospitals, birth centers, and other state-licensed birthing facilities provide infant/pediatric cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) information to parents of newborns prior to discharge. The legislation is designed to increase access to life-saving CPR information for parents.
The bill also requires that the Florida Department of Health develop and annually update educational materials relating to pediatric CPR and post such information on its website.
“It’s about increasing awareness,” said Senator Polsky. “We have a real opportunity to better prepare new parents with all the tools they need before they are discharged from the hospital.”
“Parents are given a wealth of information before they bring their new baby home, like car seat safety, immunizations, and SIDS, but nothing on CPR. By providing this critical life-saving technique, facilities can insure that parents are prepared should the need arise,” said Representative Skidmore. “No parent should feel helpless in an emergency, this bill makes sure they are prepared.”
The bill is the winning idea from the legislators’ annual, “There Ought to be a Law,” bill-writing contest. Guiliana Incorvania, the 11th grade student from West Boca Raton Community High School who proposed the idea, said, “This bill will empower parents to be able to provide CPR in an emergency and will have a considerable impact on saving lives.”
