SECTION 1. The first paragraph of section 1 of chapter 71 of the General Laws, as appearing in the 2010 Official Edition, is hereby amended by striking out the sixth sentence and inserting in place thereof the following sentences:-

All public high school students shall be required to study and to demonstrate a general knowledge of cardiopulmonary resuscitation and the use of automatic external defibrillators as a prerequisite for graduation. The instruction must be based on an instructional program established by the American Heart Association or the American Red Cross or another program which is nationally recognized and uses the most current national evidence-based Emergency Cardiovascular Care guidelines and incorporates psychomotor skills development into this instruction. (1) "Psychomotor skills" is defined as the use of hands-on practicing and skills testing to support cognitive learning. The department of elementary and secondary education shall pay the cost of such instruction. A licensed teacher shall not be required to be a certified trainer of cardiopulmonary resuscitation, to facilitate, provide or oversee such instruction for non-certification. Courses which result in a certification being earned are required to be taught by an authorized CPR/AED instructor.