Hypertrophic (hyper-tro-fic) Cardiomyopathy (cardio-MY-o-pathy) is a disease that impacts possibly as many as 1 in 250 people.
The “Healthy Cardiac Monitoring Act” (HCM Act) aims to ensure the cardiovascular health needs of all children (19 years of age and younger) and those of student-athletes are met by improving the ability of the healthcare providers to identify children and their families at risk for cardiac disorders both genetic and congenital.
We have identified 17 initial target states which represent over 50% of the US population: CA, CO, CT, IL, MA, MD, MI, MN, NJ, NY, OH, PA, TN, TX, UT, VA, and WA.
If you want to view prevalence data for cardiac disorders in your state, please click here. Additional states will be targeted later this year.
To see the full draft legislation for the HCM Act, click here
A similar Act was already passed in New Jersey. To view NJ legislation, click here
All children should be screened for the risk of cardiac arrest regardless of their athletic status, according to the updated AAP policy statement Sudden Death in the Young: Information for the Primary Care Provider.
The policy, from the AAP Section on Cardiology and Cardiac Surgery and the Pediatric & Congenital Electrophysiology Society (PACES), offers primary care providers a strategy for screening, evaluating and managing risk of sudden cardiac arrest (SCA) and sudden cardiac death (SCD) in youths.
Other ways you can help...
· Engage your elected official: reach out via e-mail, phone calls, set up meetings
· Be prepared: Know the Legislation and Know the Why
· The “ASK” is to pass this into law
· Share personal experience: be brief, but impactful
· Encourage friends and family to participate as well
There are many efforts at both the State and Federal levels related to HCM, Sudden Cardiac Arrest, Heart Health, Medical Devices, and related items that will be included on this page. This page is not intended to be a complete data source on all legislation in this space, but instead to highlight quality legislation that the HCMA supports and hopes to reproduce in other states.
