Laws Regarding AED's

What are the current prescription requirements?

For home users, there is one AED that has been exempted from the usual prescription requirement by the Food & Drug Administration (FDA).  Some states also require medical direction/physician oversight for the use of the device.  The physician extends his/her license to the group purchasing the service to shock the patient with 'doctor's orders', reviews the EKG after an event, and  provides assistance and feedback after use.  There is currently prescription requirement for all workplace programs, regardless of the brand of AED.  This service is easily provided by medical direction services, and can be provided by Less Stress Instructional Services.  Our purchased AED's already include the price of prescription.  Our leased programs include medical direction service that includes post-event review should the AED be used.  As a complete service provider, you won't have to worry about securing AED prescription when you work with Less Stress Instructional Services.

What are the regulations what enable AED use by non-clinicians?

States generally regulate that at the local level.  Most of them are very simple laws that allow individuals with a 3-4 hour CPR/AED credential to use an AED.  They even grant liability immunity to those using (and in some cases the organization purchasing) the AED.  You can look up your state's AED law at our instructor website by clicking:

http://www.CPRinstructor.com/legal.htm

In summary, you can feel good about implementing an AED program at almost any location.  In fact, the greater legal concern these days is in not having an AED at a location where is was reasonable and prudent to have one.

Additional Interesting AED Links (all open in new windows):

With the national EMS response time hovering around 8-9 minutes, likelihood of a successful defibrillation by EMS is poor. In fact, the American Heart Association estimates that for every minute that the patient is not defibrillated, they lose up to 10% off their chance of surviving. A bystander defibrillation, delivered moments after the arrest, can be much more successful. As a result, many companies have begun defibrillation projects.

AED's are virtually standard in some industries these days.  Most Fortune 1000 companies already have them in their offices.  You would be hard pressed to find an airport, commercial aircraft, or casino without one.  They are even commonplace in fitness centers, houses of worship, and in schools.