LANSING, MI (AP)-- A new program is being launched to recognize Michigan schools that are prepared for cardiac arrests.
Schools find out if they're an MI HEARTSafe School at the end of this academic year. The program will continue in future years.
It's being sponsored by the Michigan Departments of Community Health and Education along with the American Heart Association and a group focused on preventing sudden cardiac deaths.
Michigan says more than 3,100 people from ages 1 and 39 died of sudden cardiac death from 1999 to 2009. To receive a HEARTSafe designation, a school must do cardiac emergency response drills, have a medical emergency response plan, ensure 10 percent of staff is CPR-certified, inspect defibrillators and ensure student athletes are screened properly with physicals.