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WASHINGTON (CNN) -- The U.S. House of Representatives established a grant program with the Department of Education on Monday that will provide schools with funding for Automated External Defibrillators.
Joshua Miller died at 15 after suffering sudden cardiac arrest on the football field.
Rep. Betty Sutton, D-Ohio, first brought the Josh Miller HEARTS (Helping Everyone Access Responsible Treatment in Schools) Act to Congress in December.
Sutton's hometown is Barberton, Ohio, where Josh Miller, a 15-year-old high school student, died of cardiac arrest while playing football for his school's team.
Paramedics who arrived with an AED were unable to resuscitate him.
The HEARTS Act aims to reduce the number of American children who could suffer a similar fate, by supplying schools with AEDs and training staff to use them.
"H.R. 4926 bears Josh Miller's name, but it is truly in memory of all those who might have been saved, and in celebration of those who, because of this program, will have the opportunity to live to their fullest potential," Sutton said.
"AEDs are the single most effective treatment for those suffering a sudden cardiac arrest. By ensuring that schools have access to these lifesaving devices, we can prevent needless deaths in communities across the country."
The program will cost $220 million, according to the Congressional Budget Office.
After passing the House, the bill was referred to the Senate, where it was referred to the Committee on Health, Education, Labor and Pensions.
More than 166,000 people suffer cardiac arrest each year, and only about 6 percent survive, according to the American Red Cross.
On average, it takes emergency personnel eight to 10 minutes to arrive on scene, but for every minute defibrillation is delayed, there is a decrease of about 10 percent in the likelihood of resuscitation.
"Increasing access to AEDs and CPR/AED training is an essential part of our mission and we hope the Senate will embrace this issue as well," said Scott Conner, senior vice president for the American Red Cross's Preparedness, Health and Safety Services.
"By making AEDs readily available and teaching simple rescue skills, we empower people to go from being helpless bystanders to heroes with the ability to help someone during an emergency," Conner said in a statement.
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