After dozens of deaths, drop-side cribs outlawed

[kelly1218]

I figure this is budget related since new cribs will need to be purchased.


http://abclocal.go.com/wpvi/story?section=news/consumer&id=7845063

AP

WASHINGTON - December 15, 2010 -- It's the end of the traditional crib that has cradled millions of babies for generations.



The government outlawed drop-side cribs on Wednesday after the deaths of more than 30 infants and toddlers in the past decade and millions of recalls.

It was a unanimous vote by the Consumer Product Safety Commission to ban the manufacture, sale and resale of the cribs, which have a side rail that moves up and down, allowing parents to more easily lift their child from the crib.

The new standard requiring cribs to have fixed sides would take effect in June. The move by CPSC would also prohibit hotels and childcare centers from using drop-sides, though those facilities would have a year to purchase new cribs.

Around for decades, drop-side cribs have come under scrutiny in recent years because of malfunctioning hardware, sometimes cheaper plastics, or assembly problems that can lead to the drop-side rail partially detaching from the crib. When that happens, it can create a dangerous "V"-like gap between the mattress and side rail where a baby can get caught and suffocate or strangle.

CPSC Chairman Inez Tenenbaum hailed the new standard for cribs as one of the strongest in the world.

"I believe these new standards will markedly reduce crib-related hazards and help to ensure that young children sleep more safely in their cribs," Tenenbaum said after the vote.

In all, drop-side cribs have been blamed in the deaths of at least 32 infants and toddlers since 2000 and are suspected in another 14 infant fatalities. In the past five years, more than 9 million drop-side cribs have been recalled, including cribs from big-name companies such as Evenflo, Delta Enterprise Corp., and Pottery Barn Kids.

"These products are deadly, and this critically needed action will prevent further senseless deaths," said New York Democratic Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand, who pushed legislation to get drop-side cribs off the market.

The new standard also mandates tougher safety testing for cribs, tests that more closely mimic a child in a crib. As children get older, they can apply more force to the crib - shaking on it, running around in it, jumping up and down. The new tests aim to make sure the cribs can take that kind of pressure.

Better labeling on crib pieces will also be required - a measure that aims to cut down on the misassembly problems that some parents have encountered, problems that can lead to the death of a child.

For parents who lost their children in drop-side cribs, Wednesday's ban couldn't come soon enough.

"I feel like it's a celebratory time because things are finally being done about the issue," said Michele Witte of Merrick, N.Y. Witte's 10-month-old son, Tyler, died in a drop-side crib in 1997 after one of the side rails came loose, partially detached and then trapped his neck between the rail and the headboard.

Chad Johns, whose son Liam died in a drop-side crib in 2005, said he was a little relieved.

"Yes, it's a long time coming," said Johns from Roseville, Calif. "But the fact that it is happening - that's what is important."

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Online: Consumer Product Safety Commission
(Copyright ©2010 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)

 

[amy-momofthree]

no need to purchase a new crib. We had one on the recall list and we called the manufacture and they sent us a kit. It is installed so the drop side can't go down. They were very quick to ship this out and take care of it. I was impressed.

 

[ksloane]

I just found out about this and wrote about it on my blog. This is going to be massive!

 

[kelly1218]

no need to purchase a new crib. We had one on the recall list and we called the manufacture and they sent us a kit. It is installed so the drop side can't go down. They were very quick to ship this out and take care of it. I was impressed.

I'm not sure all manufactures will do that though.

I would hope that they do.


It IS going to be massive.

 

[clanmcculloch]

This happened in Canada over a year ago. I believe the major manufacturers sent kits to convert cribs from drop side to fixed IF THE COSTOMER CONTACTED THEM. My guess is that most people won't and that lots of people will prefer to keep the cribs with the drop side since they're easier for getting kids in and out, all the while keeping the crazy "it won't happen to me" though in their minds.

 

[Purseval]

I just found out about this and wrote about it on my blog. This is going to be massive!

Massive in what way? You really think families are going to fall into a panic over a crib that has a less than one in a million chance of harming their child?

 

[kaytieeldr]

What's interesting is these are the same cribs - sometimes literally the same, more often the same design - in which we slept, and we're alive. I think it's not the design, but the quality... combined, yes, to a degree with poorer instructions. Maybe ours came assembled?

 

[ksloane]

Massive in what way? You really think families are going to fall into a panic over a crib that has a less than one in a million chance of harming their child?

Massive because the government is taking a stand. Stores will be pulling these off the shelves, this will be all over the news. I'm prett ysrue that "less than one in a million" will be lost in the news.

 

[soonerfan2008]

The "well we used them, and we're still alive" is the strangest logic I've ever encountered when it comes to child safety. Yes, we ARE alive, unless we happened to be one of the kids that was killed by exposure to lead paint, lack of a car seat, a playpen suffocation, etc, in which case, "we" couldn't say that because "we" would be dead. When you know better, you do better, and there are a heck of a lot of things I did or played with that I wouldn't let my kids do.

I'm glad they are finally banning them. The number of recalls on that sort of product was nearly constant. We had a drop side crib purchased at Kmart in 2006. When it was recalled in 2008, I returned it for a full refund. No issues, no receipt, no big deal.

 

[Kathi OD]

nevermind. it was snarky

 

[Purseval]

Massive because the government is taking a stand. Stores will be pulling these off the shelves, this will be all over the news. I'm pretty srue that "less than one in a million" will be lost in the news.

That won't stop people from buying them in yard sales, off of Craigslist, pulling their old one out of the attic to use with a newborn, etc. Generations from now there will still be millions of these in circulation.

The "well we used them, and we're still alive" is the strangest logic I've ever encountered when it comes to child safety. Yes, we ARE alive, unless we happened to be one of the kids that was killed by exposure to lead paint, lack of a car seat, a playpen suffocation, etc, in which case, "we" couldn't say that because "we" would be dead.

The reason we aren't dead is because that even in the worst thing you mention death was rare (and please, spare me the "if we can save just one life" lecture, I know the drill). A child was more likely to be murdered by a parent than die in one of your examples. Maybe the high divorce rate and single parenthood trend is a good thing after all, your odds of surviving double

 

[princessmom29]

how about just properly supervising your child??? I was always told NEVEr leave a child in a crib unsupervised who is awake. The article talks about kids jumping up and down, running and banging on cribs. I doesn't take a rocket scientist to figure out that those things are unsafe and likely to damage the crib!

 

[eyeheartgoofy]

how about just properly supervising your child??? I was always told NEVEr leave a child in a crib unsupervised who is awake. The article talks about kids jumping up and down, running and banging on cribs. I doesn't take a rocket scientist to figure out that those things are unsafe and likely to damage the crib!

I don't know, but I've had sleeping babies wake up while I've been in the shower, etc. I've also been awakened by the delighted (and not so delighted) screams of a baby/toddler in the wee hours of the morning (or middle of the night) who is also standing and holding onto the crib railing and jumping up and down ... Kids are unpredictable.

 

[travelbel]

Perhaps if these cribs were made in the UNITED STATES and not in foreign countries, they would be better made without breaking plastic parts etc.

 

[hipchickie]

The "well we used them, and we're still alive" is the strangest logic I've ever encountered when it comes to child safety. Yes, we ARE alive, unless we happened to be one of the kids that was killed by exposure to lead paint, lack of a car seat, a playpen suffocation, etc, in which case, "we" couldn't say that because "we" would be dead. When you know better, you do better, and there are a heck of a lot of things I did or played with that I wouldn't let my kids do.

ITA, I always find that argument ridiculous

puseveal, please cite your sources that show a child was more likely to be murdered by a parent than die from any of the examples before legislation was taken to protect children (required car seats, no lead in paint, etc.)

 

[Purseval]

ITA, I always find that argument ridiculous

puseveal, please cite your sources that show a child was more likely to be murdered by a parent than die from any of the examples before legislation was taken to protect children (required car seats, no lead in paint, etc.)

I love people who ask for numbers without showing any of their own

Here you go:

http://www.childdeathreview.org/nationalchildmortalitydata.htm

and another:

http://www.disastercenter.com/cdc/111riskb.html

follow it back as many years as you like but notice homicide always makes the list while lead paint at best might be a subcategory of poisoning but not statistically significant enough to receive a listing of its own. Car seats can only be cited using anecdotal evidence as in X children died in car crashes this year and Y died this year so that's a tougher cite.

Speaking of anecdotal evidence, here are 2 simple Google searches. The first one is for "baby dies in crib" it comes out with over 500.000 hits. Big number. If you read a few pages, though, you will se that many of the hits are about the crib recall.

http://www.google.com/search?q=baby+dies+in+crib&hl=en&source=hp&aq=f&aqi=g1&aql=&oq=&gs_rfai=

The second search is "charged in baby's death". That has over 15 million hits. Read it and weep.

http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&...+baby's+death&aq=f&aqi=g-m1&aql=&oq=&gs_rfai=

If those stats aren't good enough for you then you can cite the number of kids who died from lead paint ingestion and we'll take it from there.

 

[MrsPete]

I have to say, I'm a bit under-whelmed by this.

First reason:

30 deaths and 14 suspected deaths in a decade. A decade. They're measuring way back to when Clinton was still president. Taking into consideration all the babies born in the last decade, that's not very many deaths.

Yes, yes, I know . . . even one is too many.

But here's the thing: Everything we do has risk. Everyone in my family rode in a car today. We ate food bought at the grocery store and food prepared by other people. We came in contact with various cleaning chemicals. Some of those things could've hurt us. Some of those things could turn out to be dangerous in the future.

We cannot be 100% protected. At what point do we draw the line between an acceptable risk vs. one that's just too much?

I had a drop-side crib, and I never had any problem with it. Since I'm very short, if I'd been forced to have a "no drop" crib, I'd have been forced to keep a stepping stool by the crib. Which would've been more dangerous? Using a drop-side crib, or me stepping up (sometimes sleepy, sometimes in the dark) on that stool every time I went to the crib with the baby in my arms?

Second reason:

Some people are idiots. Some of those idiots are parents. It'd be interesting to see how many of those cribs were put together wrong, were being used in spite of being damaged, or could otherwise be attributed to "operator error". Have you see the statistics on how many parents install their car seats incorrectly? Why should we assume people are any better at putting together their cribs?

 

[sam_gordon]

I have to say, I'm a bit under-whelmed by this.

First reason:

30 deaths and 14 suspected deaths in a decade. A decade. They're measuring way back to when Clinton was still president. Taking into consideration all the babies born in the last decade, that's not very many deaths.

Second reason:

Some people are idiots. Some of those idiots are parents. It'd be interesting to see how many of those cribs were put together wrong, were being used in spite of being damaged, or could otherwise be attributed to "operator error". Have you see the statistics on how many parents install their car seats incorrectly? Why should we assume people are any better at putting together their cribs?

Very good reasons. We got a drop side (actually both sides dropped) crib for our first child. When she outgrew it, I took it apart. I put it back together for our son. Had to take it apart to put it in his room. Took it apart when he outgrew it and put it back together for our youngest. Nary a problem.

 

[Minnie's Pal]

Massive because the government is taking a stand. Stores will be pulling these off the shelves, this will be all over the news. I'm prett ysrue that "less than one in a million" will be lost in the news.

More like putting them all on sale until the law takes affect in June. I see many parents getting deeply discounts drop-side cribs as June approaches and ordering the kits to make the side fixed. (Or taking their chance - - of just using them as is.)

 

[bdcp]

It's not strange logic to say we used them and we survived, people say that about lots of things all the time. I just find it so interesting that kids survived childhood before the last 15 or so years. I grew up in the 60s and 70s and we didn't wear helmets or wrist guards or anything. The worst thing that ever happened to anyone I knew was a broken bone. And we all slept in cribs with slats that were too far apart yet my parents never knew any child who died in one.

My boys are 24 and 27 and I used a drop side crib that I still have. And I never knew any baby or child harmed by one of them. You hear these statistics and yet rarely does anyone know anyone that it happened to. A lot of these recalls come purely out of fear of litigation. Nothing in life is entirely safe and I hate to tell people but we could wrap everything and every child in bubble wrap and yet something would still happen to some of them. We live in a world where manufacturers have to actually tell people not to use hair dryers in the bathtub, so I wonder what's next.

There will never, ever be a zero injury or death rate due to accidents. That's just life.