STAFFORD, Va. — Stafford County leaders today threw their support behind Gwyneth’s Law, a bill that would require schools to provide training in first aid, CPR, and the us of automated external defibrillators, or AEDs.
The law is named after 12-year-old Gwyneth Griffin who collapsed while running track at Stafford County’s A.G. Wright Middle School and then later died. Griffen’s father, Joel, told Fredericksburg.com no one at the school was able to care for his daughter following her collapse.
Mark Dudenhefer, R-Stafford, Woodbridge, introduced the bill during this current legislative session in Richmond. The measure also stipulates that all entering ninth graders in the 2014-15 school year must be trained in CPR and in the use of AEDs. Students with disabilities would be able to apply for a waiver to be excluded from the training, according to documents provided by Stafford County.
If the bill becomes law, having an AED inside every school in the state will become mandatory by the 2014-15 school year.
