Florida first state to require EKG screenings for high school athletes

NAPLES, Fla. (WINK)—A new Florida law taking effect July 1 will require high school athletes to get an EKG screening before competing in sports.

The Second Chance Act aims to catch dangerous heart conditions early and prevent tragedies on the field. For student-athletes across Florida, these screenings will soon become routine.

For Julianna Reilly-Gaston, heart testing has already been part of her life for years. Her journey is now helping put a face to how this new law could save lives.

"When I was first diagnosed with Wolff-Parkinson-White, it was really hard on my family, and the older I got, the more it affected me," Reilly-Gaston said.

Reilly-Gaston was diagnosed with the heart condition at a young age. She described the symptoms she experiences.

"My heart rate goes, like, I feel like my heart's gonna pop out of my chest because it goes like very fast, as it beats really fast, and I start to get like really dizzy and like sweaty and shaky," Reilly-Gaston said.

For years, she says, sports and dancing became difficult. Now, Reilly-Gaston says she hopes the new EKG requirement helps other young athletes catch heart conditions before something more serious happens.

"It's not as scary as it sounds. It's just like little stickers that go, and they're really cold, but like that's it. And there's like a screen next to you, and like they just look at, like, your heart and see, like, the lines," Reilly-Gaston said.

Under the new Second Chance Act, high school athletes must undergo at least one EKG screening before competing in FHSAA sports. Florida is the first state in the country to require it.

Dr. Sal Anzalone, director of pediatrics at Healthcare Network, explained the importance of early detection. He said standard sports physicals can miss dangerous heart abnormalities, even in athletes who seem perfectly healthy.

"The first time you'll see it is an unfortunate event that happens on the field, rather than chasing for an AED unit, find out who those kids are at risk beforehand," Anzalone said.

He added that EKG screenings significantly improve detection rates compared to standard physicals alone.

"Only about 25% of those kids will get identified—if you add the EKG, you identify more," Anzalone said.

Healthcare Network is providing a free screening for high school athletes on June 26.