ENGROSSED SENATE BILL 5790

BySenators Dhingra, Wellman, Kuderer, Nobles, Trudeau, Hunt, Fortunato, Hasegawa, Lovick, Saldaña, Stanford, Valdez, Van De Wege, and C. Wilson

AN ACT Relating to medical equipment in schools; and adding new sections to chapter 28A.210 RCW.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF WASHINGTON:

NEW SECTION.  Sec. 1. A new section is added to chapter 28A.210 RCW to read as follows:

(1) Beginning in the 2026-27 school year, each school district shall:

(a) Maintain and make available to school employees and volunteers bleeding control equipment located on each school campus for use in the event of a traumatic injury involving blood loss. The bleeding control equipment must be stored in an easily accessible area of each school campus;

(b) Require that each school has a minimum of two employees per school who have completed the training described in subsection (4) of this section. If a school has more than 1,000 students, it must have one trained employee per 500 students; and

(c) Require each school to inspect and inventory bleeding control equipment annually and after each use to ensure that any of the equipment is not expired or missing, and that any expired or missing equipment is replaced as necessary.

(2) Bleeding control equipment must include:

(a) A tourniquet endorsed by or approved for use in battlefield trauma care by the United States department of defense committee on tactical combat casualty care;

(b) A compression bandage;

(c) A bleeding control bandage;

(d) Latex-free gloves;

(e) Permanent markers;

(f) Scissors; and

(g) Instructional documents developed by the United States department of homeland security, the American college of surgeons, or a similar organization detailing methods to prevent blood loss following a traumatic event.

(3) In addition to the items listed in subsection (2) of this section, a school district may include other medical materials and equipment that:

(a) Are approved by local law enforcement or first responders;

(b) Can adequately treat a traumatic injury; and

(c) Can be stored with the readily available bleeding control equipment.

(4) School districts may satisfy the training requirements by using in-person and online trainings produced by the United States department of homeland security, the American college of surgeons, or similar organizations. The training must include:

(a) The proper application of pressure to stop bleeding;

(b) The application of dressings and bandages;

(c) Other pressure techniques to control bleeding; and

(d) The correct application of tourniquets.

(5) School districts are encouraged to implement the requirements in this section during the 2024-25 and 2025-26 school years.

(6) This section governs school operation and management under RCW 28A.710.040 and 28A.715.020 and applies to charter schools established under chapter 28A.710 RCW and state-tribal education compact schools subject to chapter 28A.715 RCW.

NEW SECTION.  Sec. 2. A new section is added to chapter 28A.210 RCW to read as follows:

(1) Beginning in the 2026-27 school year, each school district shall acquire and maintain at least one semiautomatic external defibrillator on each school campus.

(2) The school district must comply with the requirements of RCW 70.54.310, including instruction on the use of the defibrillator, maintenance of the defibrillator, and notification of the local emergency medical services organization about the location of the defibrillator.

(3) A person who uses a semiautomatic external defibrillator at the scene of an emergency is immune from civil liability pursuant to RCW 70.54.310.

(4) This section governs school operation and management under RCW 28A.710.040 and 28A.715.020 and applies to charter schools established under chapter 28A.710 RCW and state-tribal education compact schools subject to chapter 28A.715 RCW.

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