A new bipartisan bill introduced in the Ohio House would require student athletes to have cardiac screenings before a sports season.

Sudden cardiac arrest is the leading cause of death in young athletes in the United States.

Dr. Peter Vande Kappelle, a pediatric cardiologist at Akron Children's Hospital, says the bill would be beneficial.

"What we're looking for and screening for are the worst offenders. Some of these defects in the heart could lead to somebody having a sudden cardiac arrest, which might require CPR or defibrillation so those are the patients we really want to find before the event occurs to try to help save them," said Vande Kappelle. 

Under House Bill 437, student athletes would complete a Department of Health checklist during physical examinations to identify any symptoms of a cardiac condition.

State Representative Tristan Rader is one of the bill's sponsors, along with State Representative Jean Schmidt.

"I thought that it's prudent that we button up Ohio state law and make sure that really smart, modern best practice cardiac monitoring is included before a student takes the field," said Rader.

Healthcare providers who perform the examinations would be required to complete a childhood cardiac screening professional development module every four years.

"What we're trying to accomplish is to create a standardized system across the state that's going to make sure that every student, regardless of zip code, where they live or their income level or the resources that school has, get the same testing," said Rader.

Rader says the bill is still in the early stages and will soon be up for a vote by the Health Committee of the House. He does expect the bill to have a lot of support.