Recap of Arizona Lobby Day 2014

Thursday, January 30^th was a big day for the American Heart Association! On this day, You’re the Cure volunteers and survivors stormed the Capitol in Phoenix to raise awareness about heart disease as well as advocate for life saving policies designed to make Arizona a healthier place to live.  Specifically, we urged lawmakers to support 3 bills – pulse oximetry screening for newborns (House Bill 2491), CPR in schools (Senate Bill 1162) and providing safe places for children to play (SB 1123 and 1336). We support adding pulse oximetry screening to the newborn screening panel to ensure that every newborn in Arizona is screened for critical congenital heart defects.  Similarly, we support requiring CPR training in schools as CPR is a lifesaving skill and we want to ensure that every student learns CPR to develop the next generation of lifesavers.  Lastly, we support providing safe areas for children to play by limiting schools’ liability when it comes to opening facilities for shared use by the community. 

Things change very fast at the Capitol, so we invite you to please visit here to contact your legislators today!

Thanks to our volunteers, Arizona’s Lobby Day was a successful event. Highlights from the day start with Advocacy training lead by Nicole Olmstead, followed by the personal story from Jane Powers, a survivor that was saved by CPR. Next, Molly Wright and Demaree Wilson graciously told their passionate stories that clearly illustrated first-hand experience why pulse oximetry testing for newborns is so important. Needless to say, there wasn’t a dry eye in the house.  Additionally, 3 television stations covered the festivities as more than 100 attendees — children and adults — learned Hands-Only CPR from local EMTs.

Thank you for supporting the AHA and policies that will make Arizona a healthier place to live.  Please remember to visit the action center regularly to stay up-to-date on legislative updates as well as stay in touch with your legislators.  Please consult our local Government Relations Director, Nicole Olmstead or me, if you are interested in future volunteer opportunities or if you have any legislative questions.