California Employers Cannot Prohibit Employees from Administering CPR

California Assembly Bill 633 provides:  "An employer shall not adopt or enforce a policy prohibiting an employee from voluntarily providing emergency medical services, including, but not limited to, cardiopulmonary resuscitation, in response to a medical emergency . . . ."   The bill passed out of the Assembly and is being considered by the Senate. 



A.B. 633 seeks to respond to an incident in Bakersfield earlier this year, in which an 87-year-old woman died following cardiac arrest.  A seven-minute 911 call revealed that a staff member of  the independent living center where the woman was a resident declined requests from the 911 operator to perform CPR or to find someone else to perform CPR. 







A.B. 633 seeks to ensure that employers not adopt or enforce any policies that prohibit an employee from voluntarily providing emergency medical services in response to medical emergency.  Interestingly, a Senate Report concedes that "currently, it is unclear whether such policies [even] exist."  Nevertheless, the Report rightly observes that "employees might not provide emergency services out of fear that such policies might exist, which can lead to discipline or termination."  AB 633 provides clarity in the law to protect individuals who choose to help someone in emergency situations.