Ohio House Passes SUDEP Awareness Act

State Representative Gayle Manning (R-Avon) today announced the Ohio House passed House Bill 758, the “Brenna Brossard SUDEP Awareness Act.” The bipartisan legislation would raise awareness of SUDEP, or Sudden Unexpected Death in Epilepsy, by ensuring patients, families, healthcare providers, and first responders have access to prevention information and resources.

“Families deserve access to the information and resources that can help protect their loved ones. This legislation raises awareness and strengthens education efforts for patients and healthcare providers, helping Ohioans living with epilepsy access the support and resources they need,” said Manning.

On January 30, 2022, an otherwise healthy and active 25-year-old young woman named Brenna Brossard passed away suddenly during an epileptic seizure in the middle of the night. In the aftermath of their unimaginable loss, Brenna’s parents learned about SUDEP for the first time through the Epilepsy Association of Cleveland. Despite more than two decades of care from epilepsy specialists, Brenna and her family had never been informed about SUDEP, its risk factors, or the steps that could be taken to reduce risk.

SUDEP is the sudden, unexpected death of someone with epilepsy who was otherwise healthy and is the leading cause of death among individuals with uncontrolled seizures. According to the Epilepsy Foundation, more than 1 in 1,000 people with epilepsy die from SUDEP each year, though advocates believe the condition is significantly underreported.

House Bill 758 would strengthen Ohio’s approach to SUDEP prevention in four key ways:

• Improving patient education and provider support by requiring healthcare professionals treating epilepsy patients to provide information on SUDEP risk factors and prevention;
• Improving data collection and reporting by requiring confirmed SUDEP cases to be documented and reported to the national SUDEP registry;
• Improving emergency response by creating a voluntary epilepsy designation on Ohio driver’s licenses and state identification cards to assist first responders during medical emergencies; and
• Improving access to seizure detection and protection devices by requiring insurance coverage for medically necessary seizure detection devices prescribed by a specialist and prohibiting denial of coverage based on a pre-existing epilepsy diagnosis.

House Bill 758 advances to the Ohio Senate for consideration.