SAN ANTONIO – A new Texas law will soon require schools to have a plan for cardiac emergencies, and KSAT Investigates found most Bexar County-area school districts are still working on them.
KSAT Investigates began looking into the issue after hearing from concerned parents about the death of Stevens High School student Jaren Lawson. Northside ISD said he died in February 2026 after collapsing during football practice.
The Bexar County Medical Examiner ruled Lawson’s death was caused by a genetic heart condition.
Student-athlete safety concerns
The incident brought back memories for Stephanie Jaramillo, who says her own son, Maximo Saenz, suffered a medical emergency during a 2022 Stevens High School football game.
“I could see him, you know, like slowing down,” Jaramillo recalled. “And that wasn’t like my son. He collapsed.”
She said another parent took Saenz to an urgent care facility, where doctors diagnosed him with heat exhaustion.
Jaramillo emailed Northside ISD leaders because she felt her son’s coaching staff failed to notice him getting sick.
“I think it should have taken a lot more seriously back then,” she said.
Jaramillo’s son’s health scare was not cardiac-related. Hearing about Lawson’s death reinforced her concerns about student-athlete safety, which is what led her to reach out to KSAT Investigates.
“You’re talking about a life, you know, and it was that grave then, and it should have been taken more seriously then,” she said.
“When an incident like this happens, how much do you trust the people who are in charge of caring for your students to know what to do?” asked KSAT’s Daniela Ibarra.
“I mean, it’s a given,” replied Jaramillo. “You are trusting this school to know what they’re gonna do when things happen in any situation.”
Landon Payton Act
The Landon Payton Act was signed into law in 2025. It was created after a Houston ISD middle school student died in 2024 after collapsing during gym class, according to KSAT’s sister station KPRC.
“A functioning AED machine was not available until first responders arrived, which unfortunately was too late,” said State Senator Carol Alvarado (D-Houston), who authored Senate Bill 1177, during an April public hearing. “His tragic passing highlights a critical gap in safety measures across Texas schools.”
The law requires schools to have a cardiac emergency response plan in place by the start of the 2027-28 school year.
Among the requirements: nurses, athletic coaches and student athletic trainers must know CPR and how to use an AED.
KSAT Investigates spoke with Dr. David Bush, who is a pediatric cardiologist with University Health.
Bush said cardiac emergencies involving children during sports are rare, but when it happens, the response can’t wait for an ambulance to arrive.
“The coaches are going to be the first ones to see a child go down,” Bush said. “The first part is recognition.”
Bush said children who suffer cardiac arrest outside of a hospital have a less than 30% chance of survival.
“The one predictor of whether or not they will survive is how fast basic life support is brought to them,” Bush said.
Who has a plan in place?
While the deadline to have a cardiac emergency response plan is more than a year away, KSAT Investigates filed public records requests with 19 Bexar County-area school districts to see which districts already have one in place.
Most districts told KSAT Investigates they do not have a plan in place yet, or said they are actively working on putting one together.
These are the districts who already have a cardiac emergency response plan (CERP) in place:
- Alamo Heights ISD
- East Central ISD
- North East ISD
- Somerset ISD
- South San Antonio ISD
- Southside ISD
These are the districts who said they do not have a plan in place:
- Comal ISD
- Fort Sam Houston ISD (working on it)
- Harlandale ISD (working on it)
- Judson ISD (working on it)
- Lackland ISD (working on it)
- Medina Valley ISD
- San Antonio ISD
- Schertz-Cibolo-Universal City ISD
- Southwest ISD (working on it)
“That is scary,” Jaramillo said. “And to be honest with you, I feel like the school districts should take action some way now.”
The districts still have time before the new requirement takes effect at the start of the 2027-28 school year.
Jaramillo questions why schools should wait for a deadline when a cardiac arrest emergency can happen without warning.
“What do you say to the districts that don’t yet have that plan in place?” asked Ibarra.
“It’s disappointing, and it’s disheartening,” replied Jaramillo. “So what is gonna happen when another child loses their life again? Period.”
KSAT Investigates requested an interview with Northside ISD, which is where Steven High School is located.
Assistant Superintendent of Communications Barry Perez told KSAT Investigates in an email that he was unavailable to meet KSAT’s deadline for an in-person interview, but provided the following statement on behalf of the district’s health services staff.
“Northside ISD is fully prepared to respond to cardiac emergencies across all campuses through comprehensive training, strategic AED placement, and dedicated response teams:
- Certified staff: All NISD campus and floating nurses are CPR (BLS) certified and AED trained. Key personnel across every campus - including athletic trainers, elementary and secondary PE/UIL coaches, ROTC staff, police officers, and marching band directors - are also certified in CPR and AED use
- Rapid Response AED Placement: AEDs are installed at every NISD campus and strategically located to ensure a response time of three minutes or less.
- Campus Response Teams & Drills: Every Campus is finalizing its Cardiac Emergency Response Plan, with campus nurses and principals designating staff to form dedicated Cardiac Emergency Response Teams. Routine practice drills will be conducted regularly.
- Community & Campus Training: Campus nurses will be partnering with PE teachers and coaches to train entire school communities using American Heart Association Hands-Only CPR kits. "
KSAT Investigates also asked Perez about Jaramillo’s concerns involving her son’s 2022 medical incident. Perez emailed the following statement:
“Being in South Texas and living through the extreme temperatures that we do, Northside ISD takes the health, safety, and well-being of our student-athletes very seriously. The safety of our students is always a top priority, and our athletic programs have established guidelines and protocols to help ensure students are monitored and supported throughout participation.
Our coaches actively monitor students during practices, workouts, and athletic activities for signs of dehydration, fatigue, illness, or anything that may indicate a student is not feeling well. We also have athletic trainers and student trainers actively available, ready to respond immediately when a student shows any medical distress. We remain committed to continually reviewing and strengthening our practices to ensure our students can participate in athletics in a safe, healthy, and supportive environment.”
Have a tip to investigate? You can email Daniela at dibarra@ksat.com
Read more reporting on the KSAT Investigates page.