The Zachary Martin Act

In July 2017, Laurie Giordano received the worst news of her life. Her son Zachary Martin Polsenberg  was in critical condition after running sprints with his football team. 

After he collapsed, the Riverdale High School football player was taken immediately to the hospital where he was diagnosed with a core temperature of 107 degrees, exertional heat stroke, devastating internal injuries, and was in a coma. His condition continued to worsen and eleven days later, his family had to make the devastating decision to remove him from life support.

Sadly, Zachary did not have to die. If the coaches and staff had been trained to know the signs for a heat stroke and had then taken the steps to properly cool him before transportation, he likely would have lived. 

Know the Signs. Treat Immeadiately. Save Lives. 

Knowing this, Rep. Ralph Massullo and Sen. Keith Perry crafted the Zachary Martin Act (HB 7011) to require the Florida High School Athletics Association to:

• Establish and monitor cooling zones at athletic events; 
• Educate & train all coaches and sponsors of outdoor extracurricular activities to know how to monitor the heat index and follow proper hydration guidelines;
• Require all athletic employees and volunteers to be CPR and AED trained by June 1, 2021; and
• Require students to pass a medical exam before participating in athletic activities that occur over the summer, including conditioning. 

Learn more about Zachary Martin.  Read the legislation.