As early as 1994, the Department of Transportation incorporated defibrillation into their EMT-Basic National Standard Training Curriculum. ⁷

In late 2000, the federal government passed the Cardiac Arrest Survival Act (CASA) as part of the Public Health Improvement Act of 2000. This law directs placing AEDs in federal buildings and provides nationwide Good Samaritan protection. This protection exempts from liability anyone who renders emergency treatment with a defibrillator to save someone's life. Currently all 50 states and the District of Columbia have Good Samaritan laws in place that protect lay users who utilize the devices. CASA expanded access to AEDs by filling in gaps where Good Samaritan laws were non-existent or too weak. ⁵

At the same time, the Rural Access to Emergency Devices Act (Rural AED Bill) was passed. This bill authorizes the expenditure of up to $25 million in federal funds to help rural communities purchase AEDs and to train rural emergency response crews, including police and fire personal, to use the devices. ⁵

In April of 2001, the Federal Aviation Administration announced a ruling that requires life-saving devices on commercial aircraft that can carry at least 30 passengers and one attendant. Airlines must comply within three years of the rule's passage (September, 2001). In addition, flight attendants must receive AED training.

In May of 2001, the federal government released new guidelines for AEDs in facilities owned or leased by the federal government nationwide. These facilities include post offices, Social Security offices, military bases, and national parks. ⁸ The goal of these guidelines is to encourage an optimal response time of 3 minutes or less. ⁹

In July of 2001, the Community Access to Emergency Defibrillation Act of 2001 (the Community AED Act) was introduced. This legislation provides resources for communities to purchase AEDs and establish public access defibrillation (PAD) programs. If passed, these programs will: train local emergency medical services personnel to perform CPR and use AEDs; allow communities to purchase and place AEDs in public places where cardiac arrests are likely to occur; train personnel in sites with defibrillators in CPR and defibrillation; inform local EMS about location of defibrillators; train the public in CPR and use of AEDs; ensure proper maintenance and testing of devices; encourage private companies to purchase AEDs and train employees; and, collect data to evaluate the effectiveness of the program in increasing the out-of-hospital cardiac arrest survival rate in the community. ⁵