A new act was signed into law on May 16 by President Joe Biden and most people missed it. It was the “Safe Sleep for Babies Act” and it targeted the sleeping arrangements for babies in order to make them safe. It has also made it through the House of Representatives and the U.S. Senate.
As a result of this new law, manufacturers will not be able to make any more inclined sleepers or padded crib bumper pads for babies in hopes of saving lives.
An investigation into the issues surrounding the deaths of infants found that some of them were tied to inclined sleepers. That report, by Consumer Reports, was instrumental in having the act push through and made into a law.
Just how many lives were lost? 113 infants died in incidences that were directly related to crib bumpers. 100 babies died as a result of inclined sleepers.
A consumer watchdog associated with the U.S. Public Interest Research Group Education Fund, Teresas Murray was quoted in a statement, saying:
“This is a long-fought and important victory for babies and anyone who cares about babies. The dangers posed to babies have been apparent for years. Manufacturers of inclined sleepers in particular have danced around the risks in part by saying the products aren’t intended for sleeping, even though some of the marketing shows babies being rocked in the product or suggests the product will lead to sweet dreams.”
An infant might die if there was a padded bumper inside of the crib due to suffocation. They might also get stuck between the crib mattress and the bumper. In addition, a baby’s airways could be compromised and suffocation may result from inclined sleepers.
An additional statement came in from the American Academy of Pediatrics. Dr. Moira Szilagyi had the following to say: “The message from pediatricians has long been clear: the safest sleep environment for babies is a firm, flat, bare surface.”
They went on to say that dozens of infant deaths could have been prevented because the science has shown for years that crib bumpers and inclined sleepers are dangerous, yet they remained on the market.
Now that the law is in place, companies will have to comply within 180 days. There are also still many of these items in use and if you know someone that has one for their child, you should urge them to stop using them immediately.