Federal Safety Agency Votes to Regulate Baby Bath Seats
May 30, 2001 (Bethesda, Md.) -- Reversing a position it took in 1994, the Consumer Product Safety Commission, or CPSC, has voted unanimously to regulate baby bath seats. By a 3-to-0 vote the commissioners agreed that the popular products could pose a deadly threat to infants left unattended in the tub.
The final result could be anything from new labeling to an outright ban, but it may take years before the issue is fully resolved. In the meantime, no products have been recalled.
"These babies deserve our protection. No matter how you may feel about the parent's behavior, it is the children dying, not the parent," said CPSC Chairwoman Ann Brown about her decision to support a petition brought by the Consumer Federation of America and nine other groups that had demanded the seats be taken off the market.
Brown had originally agreed with that position but now feels setting tough new standards for the seats would be sufficient. "We have the authority and responsibility to take action against consumer products -- like baby bath seats -- that are contributing to the death of babies," she said in a statement.
About 1 million of the baby seats are sold annually in the U.S., and the number of manufacturers has dropped from 10 to two in the last few years. One maker, Safety 1st, says the seats actually promote healthier babies by making it easier to wash them. In a release, the company argues that a Harvard study shows banning the seats could increase drowning in tubs, since the incidence of drowning has actually decreased as more of the baby bath seats are used.
The CPSC says that 78 baby deaths have been linked to the seats during the last two decades. These drowning victims are usually between 5 and 20 months old. In many cases, the bath seat tips over because the suction cups aren't properly attached to the tub. The agency says some deaths took place when the baby slipped through the seat's leg holes, trapping the infant underwater.
Brown says it's possible the seats give caregivers a false sense of security.
Federal Safety Agency Votes to Regulate Baby Bath Seats
May 30, 2001 (Bethesda, Md.) -- Reversing a position it took in 1994, the Consumer Product Safety Commission, or CPSC, has voted unanimously to regulate baby bath seats. By a 3-to-0 vote the commissioners agreed that the popular products could pose a deadly threat to infants left unattended in the tub.
The final result could be anything from new labeling to an outright ban, but it may take years before the issue is fully resolved. In the meantime, no products have been recalled.
"These babies deserve our protection. No matter how you may feel about the parent's behavior, it is the children dying, not the parent," said CPSC Chairwoman Ann Brown about her decision to support a petition brought by the Consumer Federation of America and nine other groups that had demanded the seats be taken off the market.
Brown had originally agreed with that position but now feels setting tough new standards for the seats would be sufficient. "We have the authority and responsibility to take action against consumer products -- like baby bath seats -- that are contributing to the death of babies," she said in a statement.
About 1 million of the baby seats are sold annually in the U.S., and the number of manufacturers has dropped from 10 to two in the last few years. One maker, Safety 1st, says the seats actually promote healthier babies by making it easier to wash them. In a release, the company argues that a Harvard study shows banning the seats could increase drowning in tubs, since the incidence of drowning has actually decreased as more of the baby bath seats are used.
The CPSC says that 78 baby deaths have been linked to the seats during the last two decades. These drowning victims are usually between 5 and 20 months old. In many cases, the bath seat tips over because the suction cups aren't properly attached to the tub. The agency says some deaths took place when the baby slipped through the seat's leg holes, trapping the infant underwater.
Brown says it's possible the seats give caregivers a false sense of security.
SHARE
