Recognizing and supporting the recognition of February 2024 as "American Heart Month".

WHEREAS, more than 350,000 people experience cardiac arrest outside of a hospital each year and only about 1 in 10 survive; and more than 23,000 children under the age of 18 experience cardiac arrest outside of a hospital each year in the United States and almost 40 percent of these are sports related; and

WHEREAS, there are effective solutions to this problem - awareness and education to have cardiac emergency response plans in place, CPR education and automated external defibrillator (AED) training and accessibility; and

WHEREAS, about 70 percent of cardiac arrests that occur outside of a hospital happen at home; and

WHEREAS, CPR, especially if performed immediately, can double or triple a person’s chance of survival; and only about 46 percent of people who experience cardiac arrest receive CPR from people nearby while waiting for emergency responders to arrive; and

WHEREAS, knowing how to properly perform CPR has encouraged more people to act when faced with a cardiac emergency and to save more lives from cardiac arrest outside of a hospital, we must increase the number of people who respond to cardiac arrest by calling 911, delivering high-quality CPR and using an AED as soon as it is available; and

WHEREAS, CPR is a lifesaving skill that most people, including children as young as age 9, can learn; and

WHEREAS, the American Heart Association has set a goal of doubling the survival from cardiac arrest by 2030 by turning bystanders into lifesavers, so that everyone, everywhere is prepared and empowered to become a vital link in the chain of survival and provide CPR in response to a cardiac emergency; and

WHEREAS, currently 90 percent of people who experience cardiac arrest outside of a hospital die, in part because they do not receive CPR more than half of the time; and CPR; especially if performed immediately, can double or triple a person’s chance of survival ; and

WHEREAS, in celebration of American Heart Month and the American Heart Association’s 100th birthday, we urge every household to join the Nation of Lifesavers and learn CPR, now therefore, be it

RESOLVED, BY THE COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF PHILADELPHIA, That it hereby declares the month of February 2024 to be “American Heart Month” in recognition of the importance of the ongoing fight against heart disease and stroke, and the effort to double the survival rate from cardiac arrest.

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