Ron DeSantis just made one life-saving decision that will have parents celebrating nationwide

Student athletes across the country are dropping dead on playing fields.

Their parents had no idea their children were walking time bombs.

And Ron DeSantis just made one life-saving decision that will have parents celebrating nationwide.

Florida blazes trail with groundbreaking student athlete protection

Florida Governor Ron DeSantis made history by signing “The Second Chance Act” into law, making Florida the first state in America to require electrocardiogram (ECG) screenings for all high school student athletes.¹

This isn’t just another government regulation.

It’s a direct response to a heartbreaking crisis that’s been claiming young lives across the nation.

The devastating reality is that heart attacks kill more young athletes than any other cause during sports activities.²

According to medical experts, roughly one out of every 300 young people has a dangerous heart problem they don’t even know about.³

Traditional sports physicals that schools have relied on for decades are basically useless when it comes to detecting these silent killers.

The tragic story that changed everything

The push for this landmark legislation gained momentum after 18-year-old Chance Gainer, a senior at Port St. Joe High School, collapsed during a football game in September and died.⁴

His sudden death wasn’t an isolated incident.

In August 2024 alone, six high school athletes died nationwide, with four of those deaths tied to heart-related issues.⁵

These weren’t kids with known health problems or family histories of heart disease.

They were healthy, active teenagers who should have had their whole lives ahead of them.

The current system of sports physicals and family history checks only catches 10 to 20 percent of dangerous heart conditions.⁶

That means 80 to 90 percent of at-risk kids are slipping through the cracks.

Game-changing detection rates save lives

Here’s where DeSantis’s law becomes a genuine game-changer for student safety.

ECG screenings can detect 80 percent of conditions associated with sudden cardiac arrest on their own.⁷

But when combined with traditional sports physicals, the detection rate skyrockets to an incredible 94 percent.⁸

That’s the difference between sending a kid home to their family after practice or sending them to the morgue.

When the 2026-2027 school year begins, high school students will need to get their hearts checked with an ECG test before they can play sports or even try out for teams.⁹

The law doesn’t just mandate the screenings and walk away.

DeSantis made sure the law includes smart provisions requiring school districts to work with outside groups to offer affordable heart screenings so no family gets priced out of protecting their kids.¹⁰

Florida leads where other states failed to act

Other states like Texas, Pennsylvania, and Tennessee passed watered-down laws that just tell families about heart screenings without actually requiring them.¹¹

Florida didn’t settle for half-measures or feel-good legislation that doesn’t actually save lives.

DeSantis and the Florida Legislature understood that information without action means more dead kids.

The bill passed unanimously in both the Florida House and Senate, showing that protecting children’s lives isn’t a partisan issue.¹²

Representative Jason Shoaf, who sponsored the bill, and Senator Corey Simon worked alongside Parent Heart Watch to turn tragedy into meaningful change.¹³

Martha Lopez-Anderson, Executive Director of Parent Heart Watch, celebrated the milestone: “Family and friends affected by sudden cardiac arrest have championed heart screenings for decades. Through collaboration with Florida-based Parent Heart Watch member foundations and dedicated medical champions, we’ve achieved a long-sought milestone in the pursuit of a stronger standard of care.”¹⁴

Smart safeguards protect families and freedom

Critics might worry about government overreach, but DeSantis built common-sense exemptions into the law.

Students can opt out for religious beliefs, medical objections, or if ECGs cost more than fifty dollars and affordable options aren’t available.¹⁵

The Florida High School Athletic Association will prevent any student with an abnormal EKG result from playing until a licensed medical professional provides written clearance.¹⁶

This isn’t about keeping kids off the field.

It’s about making sure they live to play another day.

The law puts the power back in the hands of parents and doctors while giving families the information they need to make life-or-death decisions about their children’s participation in sports.

Several Florida school districts, including Brevard, Flagler, Miami-Dade, Osceola, Orange and Suwannee counties, had already taken local action to implement ECG screenings.¹⁷

Now the entire state follows suit with a unified, life-saving requirement that could serve as a model for the rest of America.

DeSantis once again proved that real leadership means taking action to protect families, even when it requires standing up to the status quo and doing what other states were too afraid to attempt.

¹ Parent Heart Watch Press Release, June 25, 2025

² Ibid.

³ Ibid.

⁴ CBS12 News, “Florida mandates annual EKGs for student athletes under new law”

⁵ Ibid.

⁶ Parent Heart Watch Press Release, June 25, 2025

⁷ Ibid.

⁸ Ibid.

⁹ Ibid.

¹⁰ Ibid.

¹¹ Ibid.

¹² Rob Garguilo, “Florida Now Requires Heart Screenings for All High School Athletes,” June 30, 2025

¹³ WMBB News, “The Second Chance Act: Florida becomes the first state to require EKG screenings for high school athletes”

¹⁴ Parent Heart Watch Press Release, June 25, 2025

¹⁵ Rob Garguilo, “Florida Now Requires Heart Screenings for All High School Athletes,” June 30, 2025

¹⁶ Ibid.

¹⁷ Parent Heart Watch Press Release, June 25, 2025