REPORTERS & BLOGGERS: Sudden Cardiac Arrest (SCA) is a life-threatening emergency that occurs when the heart unexpectedly stops beating. It strikes seemingly healthy people of all ages, even children and teens. When SCA happens, the person collapses, becomes unresponsive, and is not breathing normally. The person may appear to gasping, snoring or having a seizure. SCA leads to death within minutes if the person does not receive immediate help. Survival depends on the quick actions of people nearby to call 911, start CPR (cardiopulmonary resuscitation), and if available, use an AED (automated external defibrillator) as soon as possible.
Each year, 356,000 people experience EMS-assessed out-of-hospital non-traumatic sudden cardiac arrest and only one in 10 victims survives. Survival rates could double or triple if the victims receive immediate CPR. Learn more here.
We have your expert sources. Call 724-625-0025 or email media [at] sca-aware.org for immediate interviews.
2024 News Releases
2/14/24: Sudden Cardiac Arrest survivors and loved ones are finding information, resources, and support through the Cardiac Arrest Survivor Alliance
2023 News Releases
12/21/23: Sudden Cardiac Arrest Foundation Names Jayden Rodriguez Winner of the 2023 “People Saving People” Award
10/31/23: American Heart Association Supports Sudden Cardiac Arrest Foundation's Cardiac Arrest Survivor Alliance™
10/6/23: October is National Sudden Cardiac Arrest Awareness Month. Sudden Cardiac Arrest Continues to Have Profound Impact in 2023: Underscores Urgent Call for Awareness & Action
2/14/23: Damar Hamlin’s Cardiac Arrest Fuels Resurgence of Lifesaving Call-Push-Shock movement
1/3/2023: Sudden Cardiac Arrest Foundation Urges Public Awareness and Action after Collapse of Damar Hamlin
2022 News Releases
10/6/22: Seven Common Myths About Sudden Cardiac Arrest: What Everyone Needs to Know About Saving a Life
6/1/22: Call-Push-Shock Partners Urge the Public to Learn CPR and How to Use AEDs to Help Save Lives
3/10/22: New Report Identifies Sudden Cardiac Arrest as a Public Health Crisis; Underscores Need for the Public to Learn CPR and How to Use AEDs
2021 News Releases
12/16/21: Juliana and Bill Schirmer Named Winners of Sudden Cardiac Arrest Foundation "People Saving People Award"
11/18/21: Mary M. Newman, MS, President of Sudden Cardiac Arrest Foundation, Named Recipient of the 2021 American Heart Association Resuscitation Science Champion Award
10/28/21: Anyone Can Help Save a Life Threatened by Sudden Cardiac Arrest by Following Three Simple Steps: Call, Push, Shock
6/24/21: Sudden Cardiac Arrest Foundation urges public awareness and action after collapse of Danish soccer player, Christian Eriksen
2020 News Releases
10/22/20: Taking cookie sales to heart: T-Rex Cookie Company donates 10% of October sales to support Sudden Cardiac Arrest Awareness Month
2019 News Releases
12/31/19: Call-Push-Shock: A Growing Public Health Movement That Can Save Thousands of Lives Each Year
12/19/19: Kyle Hayes, Who Saved His Wife and Unborn Child with CPR, Is Named Winner of the Sudden Cardiac Arrest Foundation’s People Saving People Award
10/7/19: National Experts Call on the American Public to Recognize Public Health Crisis and Take Action During National Sudden Cardiac Arrest Awareness Month
6/4/19: Sudden Cardiac Arrest Foundation and Citizen CPR Foundation Launch Video Contest to Raise Awareness About the Simple Things Anyone Can Do to Help Save a Life
5/30/19: Multiple Organizations Unite for National CPR-AED Awareness Week, June 1-7, Urging the Public to 'Call-Push-Shock'
2/14/19: New Statistics Reveal Cardiac Arrest Survival Remains Low; To Save More Lives, the Sudden Cardiac Arrest Foundation Urges the Public to Learn CPR and How to Use AEDs
2018 News Releases
11/15/18: Thousands More Lives Could Be Saved Each Year If More People Understood Sudden Cardiac Arrest and the Need for Immediate Bystander Intervention
10/10/18: Sudden Cardiac Arrest Foundation Releases Position Statement on the Use of Mobile Technology to Help Save Lives Threatened by Sudden Cardiac Arrest
10/2/18: Multiple Organizations Unite for Sudden Cardiac Arrest Awareness Month, Urging the Public to 'Call-Push-Shock'
5/29/18: Parent Heart Watch and Sudden Cardiac Arrest Foundation Join Forces to Urge the Public to Learn CPR and How to Use AEDs to Help Save Lives
2/14/18: A Save of Olympic Proportions: Paul Wylie's Comeback from Sudden Cardiac Arrest is a Reminder of the Importance of Learning CPR, Especially During February, Heart Month
2017 News Releases
12/19/17: Parent Heart Watch Wins National Video Contest Aimed at Raising Awareness About Sudden Cardiac Arrest, the Third Leading Cause of Death in the U.S.
12/14/17: Illinois High School Student Brendan Gould Wins Sudden Cardiac Arrest Foundation's People Saving People Award
10/12/17: Survivors of Sudden Cardiac Arrest Are Invited to Nominate Their Rescuers for the Sudden Cardiac Arrest Foundation's People Saving People Award
9/21/17: Sudden Cardiac Arrest Foundation and Citizen CPR Foundation Launch Video Contest to Raise Awareness About the Simple Things Anyone Can Do to Save a Life
6/2/17: Sudden Cardiac Arrest Foundation Urges the Public to Learn CPR and How to Use an AED During National CPR-AED Awareness Week
2016 News Releases
12/20/16: Sudden Cardiac Arrest Foundation's Katie Koenig Named to Crain's Chicago List of 40 Under 40
11/15/16: Sudden Cardiac Arrest is Not on Consumers' Radar, According to Research from the Sudden Cardiac Arrest Foundation Presented at the AHA Resuscitation Science Symposium
7/15/16: Inspirational Video from the Sudden Cardiac Arrest Foundation, Featuring Survivors and Loved Ones, Urges the Public to Learn CPR and How to Use Defibrillators
6/30/16: Inaugural Steel City Fire on Ice Charity Classic Benefiting the Sudden Cardiac Arrest Foundation a Success in More Ways than One
6/16/16: Greater Pittsburgh and Johnstown, Pennsylvania, Firefighters to Compete in Steel City Fire on Ice Charity Hockey Game to Support the Sudden Cardiac Arrest Foundation
4/2/16: Sudden Cardiac Arrest: It's Not a Heart Attack
2/25/16: Sudden Cardiac Arrest Foundation Announces Schools that will Receive Grants for Defibrillators, Made Possible by the Hillsdale Fund
1/28/16: Sudden Cardiac Arrest Is Not on Consumers' Radar, According to Research from the Sudden Cardiac Arrest Foundation
2015 News Releases
12/18/15: Bystander Mike Vanneman Wins Sudden Cardiac Arrest Foundation's 2015 "People Saving People" Award
12/10/15: "CPR Saves Lives" March Focuses Attention on Improving Sudden Cardiac Arrest Survival Rates
9/10/15: Help Raise Awareness About Sudden Cardiac Arrest: Create a Short Video for a Chance to Win an Automated External Defibrillator for Your Organization
7/2/15: Sudden Cardiac Arrest Foundation Applauds Institute of Medicine Report on Cardiac Arrest
6/2/15: Seven Things Everyone Should Know About Sudden Cardiac Arrest, A Leading Cause of Death in the U.S.
1/15/15: Sudden Cardiac Arrest, A Public Health Crisis, Affects Nearly 1,000 People Each Day in the U.S.; Survival Rates Increase Dramatically When Bystanders Take Action
2014 News Releases
12/1/14: Help Raise Awareness About Sudden Cardiac Arrest on #GivingTuesday
10/07/14: Force for Health Foundation and Sudden Cardiac Arrest Foundation Jointly Launch Student Health Force Chain of Survival Program for Schools
9/25/14: The AED Readiness Project: A Cost-Effective Solution for Schools Aiming to Prepare for Sudden Cardiac Arrest by Deploying Defibrillators
8/6/14: National AED Readiness Project Aims to Help Individuals and Organizations Prepare for Sudden Cardiac Arrest
6/30/14: TV News Anchor Susan Koeppen, National Spokesperson for the Sudden Cardiac Arrest Foundation, Shares Her Inspirational Story of Survival from Sudden Cardiac Arrest
2/28/14: Sudden Cardiac Arrest Launches "You Can Save a Life at School AED Challenge"
1/22/14: Sudden Cardiac Arrest Foundation's Greater LA Affiliate and Brentwood School Best Buddies Program Donate Defibrillator to McBride School
2013 News Releases
11/07/13: Sudden Cardiac Arrest Foundation Honored as 2013 Top-Rated Nonprofit by Great Nonprofits
10/04/13: Bystander's Heroic Actions Mean the Difference Between Life and Death for Young Victim, Reports Sudden Cardiac Arrest Foundation
07/01/13: Save Money on Mobile Phone Bills and Help Save Lives Threatened by Sudden Cardiac Arrest
06/06/13: Will Proposed FDA Action Reduce Access to Defibrillators for Victimes of Sudden Cardiac Arrest?
05/16/2013: Raising Awareness about the Nation's Leading Cause of Death: Sudden Cardiac Arrest
03/04/13: It Takes a Village to Save a Life: Sudden Cardiac Arrest Foundation Recognizes Heroes Who Save the Life of Roland "Mike" Dulaney
02/13/2013: Youth Sports Safety Alliance Develops National Action Plan to Protect Student-Athletes from Sudden Cardiac Arrest and Other Life-threatening Condiions
2012 News Releases
11/1/12: Sudden Cardiac Arrest Foundation Urges Colleges to Ensure Campuses are Prepared to Prevent Unexpected Cardiac Death Among Students, Faculty and Visitors
10/2/12: October is National Sudden Cardiac Arrest Awareness Month: The Sudden Cardiac Arrest Foundation Urges the Public to Learn CPR and How to Use an AED
08/30/2012: Discover Your Peers and Find Support at the Sudden Cardiac Arrest Network
08/10/2012: Help Raise Awareness about Sudden Cardiac Arrest: Create a Short Video for a Chance to Win an Automated External Defibrillator
07/02/2012: Honor Your Heroes. Nominate Them for the Sudden Cardiac Arrest Foundation's People Saving People Award.
05/31/2012: Sudden Cardiac Arrest Foundation Announced Two Contests in Recognition of National CPR-AED Awareness Week
05/30/2012: Citizen CPR Foundation Partners with Sudden Cardiac Arrest Association and Sudden Cardiac Arrest Foundation at ECCU Conference, Sept. 11-15
05/17/2012: TV News Anchor and Survivor Susan Koeppen Will Walk to Save Lives Threatened by Sudden Cardiac Arrest
