Damar Hamlin Named to TIME Magazine’s Most Influential People in Health

Damar Hamlin is using his life experiences to make an impact in society and with that, he has received prestigious recognition from one of the most notable magazines in the country.

TIME Magazine named Hamlin as one of the 100 most influential people in health.

Now this is cool: Central Catholic alum and current Buffalo Bill, Damar Hamlin has been named one of TIME’s most influential people in health!

👏👏👏👏👏 pic.twitter.com/X0tz7Vll0C

— WPIAL Insider (@WPIAL_Insider) May 15, 2025

Hamlin, a McKees Rocks native, Central Catholic and Pitt grad, collapsed during a Buffalo Bills-Cincinnati Bengals game in the final week of the 2022 season as he suffered a cardiac arrest. Both an AED and CPR were administered to Hamlin on the field before being moved into an ambulance and taken to a nearby hospital.

The Bills safety made a remarkable recovery as he resumed football activities ahead of the following season where he would appear in five games. In 2024, he played in 14 games as a full-time starter with 89 tackles and the first two interceptions of his career.

After Hamlin’s life-changing incident, he has become an instrumental voice for cardiac care. He went to Washington D.C. to lobby on behalf of the Access to AEDs Act, which provides government funds to supply elementary and secondary schools with AEDs.

Hamlin also fought for the Cardiomyopathy Health Education, Awareness, Research and Training in Schools (HEARTS) Act, which puts in place a cardiac-emergency response plan for all schools in the United State. It was signed into federal law in December.

Beyond the impact at the lawmaking level, Hamlin has donated roughly $700,000 worth of AEDs to youth sports groups and partnered with healthy company Abbott to create personal relationships with numerous heart patients, according to TIME’s Sean Gregory.

Hamlin, 27, recently signed a contract extension to stay in Buffalo — the organization that drafted him in the sixth round of the 2021 NFL Draft.

Across his five seasons at Pitt, Damar Hamlin compiled 290 tackles (192 solo), six interceptions, 27 passes defended, 10 tackles for loss and one fumble recovery.