TOPEKA — Reagan Herrman’s heart condition remained hidden until halfway through a summer youth basketball game at Washburn University when she became short of breath and struggled to reach the team’s bench.
“I went behind the bench, because my coach was also my dad. He told me to go walk, to walk it off. So I did and sat on the bench. Just as soon as I sat down, as I remember it, it all went black,” she said.
Herrman collapsed and went into cardiac arrest. Health professionals and others trained in CPR jumped into action. Eventually, a portable medical device known as an AED, or automated external defibrillator, was deployed. It delivered a single electric shock that restored her heartbeat.
“If the shock wasn’t delivered, I don’t think I would have made it,” she said on the Kansas Reflector podcast. “I remember waking up, being out of breath, breathing really heavy and then seeing people all around me. I heard voices and shouting and see people talking to me. Like ‘Reagan, can you hear me?’ Then I saw my mom, which she says I said, ‘I love you.’ ”
HERRMAN’S heart stopped for approximately four minutes on a Topeka basketball court on July 16, 2023. She was unresponsive and began to turn blue. The university’s preparation for health emergencies and the availability of a defibrillator saved the life of the then-13 year old Emporia resident.
She was airlifted to a hospital and spent a week in a cardiac intensive care unit. Doctors diagnosed Herrman with CPVT, or catecholaminergic polymorphic ventricular tachycardia, which is an inherited condition causing sudden heart rhythm disturbances in otherwise healthy children. She recovered and, eventually, was cleared to resume sports activities.
But Herrman’s story didn’t end there.
THE YOUNG cardiac-arrest survivor served as motivation for the Kansas Legislature to pass a 2024 law requiring public schools to develop cardiac emergency response plans that included CPR and AED training of key personnel. It was modeled after the Emporia school district’s decision in wake of Herrman’s experience to add 14 new AEDs to district buildings, provide training for school personnel and coaches, and install 120 signs to point people to lifesaving equipment.
“It is our hope that Reagan’s story can serve as a catalyst for change in Kansas’ approach to AED accessibility,” her mother, Amanda Herrman, told House and Senate lawmakers. “Reagan’s experience underscores the critical importance of this initiative. Our family feels blessed for the fortunate outcome that day, knowing that many other families may not have such a story to tell.”
That bill was supported by other Kansans with firsthand knowledge of cardiac arrest. The legislation required public schools to create cardiac emergency response plans and work to outfit buildings with AEDs. The bill received broad support in the House and Senate.
Reagan Herrman, who didn’t know CPR before enduring her own cardiac emergency, was in the Capitol for signing of the bill.
During the 2025 legislative session, the American Heart Association worked to convince the Legislature to appropriate $1.5 million to pay for CPR and AED training programs and the equipment purchases. That funding was included in a large budget bill awaiting action by Gov. Laura Kelly.
Kari Rinker, who works as a lobbyist for the American Heart Association, was involved in rallying support for additional funding to help Kansas public schools comply with the emergency training standard.
“There have been challenges in some communities getting this in place. Especially rural communities might have fewer training resources,” Rinker said.
Access to additional training and positioning of equipment in schools could reduce the hesitancy some people have about jumping into an emergency, she said.
RINKER SAID the survival rate of people who experienced cardiac arrest was around 10% without an immediate response from people on the scene. If CPR was performed quickly, she said, the survival rate could be doubled or tripled. When a child goes into cardiac arrest in a school with AEDs onsite, however, approximately 70% survive.
“Yet, fewer than 50% of people say they are confident to step in and perform this function. We want to improve that. We want to create a nation of lifesavers,” she said.
