Telephone CPR Bill Heads to Gov. Edwards

Good news! With a 93-0 vote by the Louisiana House on Thursday, May 17, Senate Bill 264, Telephone CPR, by Senator Troy Carter is headed to Governor John Bel Edwards' desk to be signed! The legislation will ensure that telecommunicators in Louisiana, who receive emergency medical condition calls, will be trained on the delivery of high-quality telephone CPR instructions.

Telecommunicators are the true, first responders and a critical link in the cardiac arrest chain of survival. It is the telecommunicator, in partnership with the caller, who can identify a patient in cardiac arrest, providing the initial level of care by delivering telephone CPR instructions to the caller, and quickly dispatching the appropriate level of help. It is through these actions that the telecommunicator can make the difference between life and death.

Let's take a look at the path of this potentially life-saving bill during Louisiana's 2018 Regular Legislative Session: 

• Pre-filed and under the rules provisionally referred to the Senate Committee on Health and Welfare.
• 3/27/18: Bill passes Senate Committee favorably (with amendments). Committee amendments provide for an updated definition of “public safety telecommunicator” and rolling implementation dates based on parish population.
• 4/2/18: Bill passes Senate floor with 37-0 vote
• 4/12/18: Bill passes House committee favorably with amendments.
• 4/30/18: Bill is scheduled for final passage on the House Floor.
• 5/3/18: T-CPR passes the House floor with an 89-1 vote. The Bill returns to the Senate for concurrence.
• 5/8/18: Senate rejects the House committee amendment that exempts parishes with populations of 100,000 and less from complying with the bill.
• 5/9/18: Bill goes to conference committee to confirm the removal of amendment. House conferees appointed [Miller, D., Hoffmann, Smith] Senate conferees appointed [Carter, Mills, Boudreaux]
• 5/16/18: Bill conference committee report passes Senate 33 – 0. Moves to House.
• 5/17/18: Bill conference committee report passes House 93 – 0. Heads to Governor!

Read the bill at legis.la.gov.