Lobbying for AEDs in schools nationwide

PUTNAM COUNTY, W.Va. (WSAZ) - First responders make a life-saving difference every day in their communities. And now, EMS workers from Putnam County are trying to make a change in every school across the country.

Putnam County EMS said they are asking lawmakers in Washington, D.C., to push for grants through Health and Human Services to get AEDs and CPR training in schools.

Calley Yingist with Putnam County EMS knows the importance of CPR training and AEDs firsthand, which is why she went to the nation’s capital to talk with lawmakers about a bill passed in 2024 called the “access to AEDs act” that authorized federal grants for AEDs, but the program has yet to be funded.

The bill says in part “to authorize the Secretary of Health and Human Services to award grants to eligible entities to develop and implement a comprehensive program to promote student access to defibrillation in public elementary schools and secondary schools.”

Yingist was one paramedic who helped 11-year-old Gryffin Cavender, who had a cardiac event in gym class.

“On the way back through the county, I decided that I wanted to go to Panera to get one of their little lemonades they had at the time. That put us extremely close to Gryffin’s cardiac arrest. That put us within two miles of Gryffin’s cardiac arrest. The next nearest ambulance would have been over 15 minutes away. So it was one of those cases that we were meant to be there that day,” Yingist said.

We reached out to lawmakers for their response. U.S. Rep. Carol Miller, R-W.Va., released the following statement:

“This past week, American Heart Association advocates came to my office to discuss funding for the HEARTS Act grant program. The HEARTS Act was passed into law in 2024 authorizing this federal grant program, but the program has yet to be funded. As Congress now works on Fiscal Year 2027 appropriations, funding for various grant programs and initiatives are being discussed and will be handled by my colleagues on the Appropriations Committee before being presented to the full House of Representatives. This is a wonderful initiative that I will give my full consideration when this year’s funding bills arise.

“It was wonderful to hear directly from Putnam County EMS workers with the incredible news that Putnam County has achieved their goal of having life-saving AED machines in every school in the county thanks to the initiative and leadership of the Putnam County Commission and EMS team.”