State leaders introduce Jordan McNair Student Athlete Heat Fatality Prevention Act
BALTIMORE -- U.S. Congressman Kweisi Mfume, and Senator Ben Cardin introduced Wednesday, the Jordan McNair Student Athlete Heat Fatality Prevention Act.
The legislation seeks to protect college athletes from heat fatalities and illnesses.
The bill was name din honor of Jordan McNair, a former freshman on the University of Maryland football team that collapsed due to heatstroke during practice on May 29, 2018.
That day, his temperature reached 106 degrees, and roughly 90 minutes passed before he arrived at a nearby hospital to receive medical attention. He was airlifted to the University of Maryland Medical Center Shock Trauma Center to receive an emergency liver transplant, but died 2 weeks later.
Both McNair's parents, and state leaders said that McNair's death was preventable, and due to a lack of swift action that should have been taken to reduce his body temperature.
"Jordan McNair's death was avoidable. We owe it to him and his family to do everything we can to ensure such a tragedy is not repeated," Senator Cardin said.
The introduced bill would require institutions of higher education participating in an athletic association or athletic conference to set and implement venue-specific heat illness emergency action plans, prior to in-person practice.
It would also require university athletic programs to collaborate with local emergency responders to make automatic external defibrillators, and cold water immersion equipment available.
