Rep. Sheila Cherfilus-McCormick, D-FLa., greets Buffalo Bills safety Damar Hamlin at an event in Washington, D.C., advocating for legislation the congresswoman introduced to provide money for AEDs and training in schools. Jack Gruber / USA TODAY NETWORK

Damar Hamlin meets with President Biden to advocate for AED bill

Originally posted on Sportsnaut | By Vincent Frank | Last updated 3/31/23

On January 2, Buffalo Bills safety Damar Hamlin suddenly collapsed on the football field during a game against the Cincinnati Bengals at Paycor Stadium.

The entire NFL world was in shock as the former Pittsburgh star laid motionless on the football field. Hamlin, 25, ultimately had to be given CPR which required the use of a defibrillator to bring him back to life.

A healthy young man had just collapsed in front of millions after going into cardiac arrest. The good news for Hamlin is that there was medical personnel with the required support such as a defibrillator to help save his life.

Months after the scary incident, Hamlin is doing well. In fact, there’s been some talk that he could return to his career as an NFL player. As for the young man, he’s using this public forum to increase defibrillator access in the United States. That included meeting with President Biden at the White House on Thursday.

Hamlin was on hand in D.C. to lobby for a bipartisan bill introduced in the U.S. House of Representatives that would help provide automated external defibrillators, or AEDs, in a more mainstream way.

Damar Hamlin’s courage, resilience, and spirit inspired the American people.

And what's more: he turned recovery into action – and our country is better for it.

It was my honor to have him and his family here today. pic.twitter.com/xju70wnAzl
— President Biden (@POTUS) March 30, 2023

For Hamlin, it’s all about more schools around the United States having access to AED’s and other life-saving assets, including CPR training and cardiac emergency response plans.

“Sudden cardiac arrest happens to more than 7,000 kids under the age of 18 every year in our country. The majority of the kids impacted are student athletes. Research shows that 1 in every 300 youth has an undetected heart condition that puts them at risk,” Hamlin to Congress.

The aforementioned bill, The Access to AEDS Act, was introduced to Congress on March 29 by Reps. Bill Posey (R) and Sheila Cherfilus-McCormick (D) as well as Sen. Cory Booker (D). The American College of Cardiology (ACC) and American Heart Association (AHA) have also thrown their support behind the bill.

This article first appeared on Sportsnaut and was syndicated with permission.

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