Download our STOP THE BLEED® factsheet.
In late March 2024, the Washington State Legislature enacted legislation requiring schools in the state to maintain and provide bleeding control equipment on campus. The result of years of advocacy efforts from multiple groups and organizations across the state, including members of the ACS Committee on Trauma and the ACS Washington State Chapter, the bill also includes other measures to greatly help communities respond to bleeding emergencies. Read more about Senate Bill 5790 and listen to a video interview with Drs. Eileen M. Bulger and Bryce R.H. Robinson of the ACS on the significance of such legislation.
In May 2023, the Colorado legislature passed a bipartisan bill that was signed into law by Governor Jared Polis to provide STOP THE BLEED® kits and training to schools in the state who opt into receiving them.
The law requires the Colorado Department of Public & Environmental Health, in coordination with the American College of Surgeons Committee on Trauma, to track school participation, training, and the number of kits placed in schools.
Learn more about HB23-1213.
During the 2022 legislative session, the state of California passed legislation—Assembly Bill 2260—that requires the installation of trauma bleeding control kits in newly constructed public and private buildings throughout the state. The legislation, “Emergency Response: Trauma Kits,” is the first statewide law of its kind to make bleeding control kits widely accessible in this manner.
Amy E. Liepert, MD, FACS, a trauma and acute care surgeon, led the grassroots initiative that advocated for this legislation over the last two years. Along with a coalition of California colleagues, Dr. Liepert testified before the California legislature multiple times to advocate for this law.
“The bill doesn’t pass by the initial idea. Advocates must have the ability to communicate, compromise, and discuss what is ideal in your state. Having STOP THE BLEED® kits in your community is the ultimate goal,” Dr. Liepert said.
Learn more about this legislation in the videos below featuring Dr. Liepert and bill cosponsors Asm. Freddie Rodriguez and former Sen. Ben Hueso, and on the American College of Surgeons website.
