Lawmakers warned baby product manufacturers to improve internal safety procedures after sleepers were linked to infant deaths.
Lawmakers on Monday warned manufacturers of baby sleepers that if they don’t improve internal safety procedures following a series of recalls linked to dozens of infant deaths, Congress would step in with tougher consumer protection laws.
The probe found that toy maker Fisher-Price “ignored critical warnings” from experts and foreign regulators about its Rock ’n Play Sleeper, according to a report released Monday.Executives from Fisher-Price and its parent, El Segundo-based Mattel, defended their safety procedures. Chuck Scothon, senior vice president and general manager of Fisher-Price, told lawmakers that the company’s safety team “conducted significant consumer testing” on the sleeper and made appropriate design changes.
Rock ’n Play and similar sleepers are padded bassinets that keep babies at a 10- to 30-degree angle, intended to help them sleep. But afunded by the Consumer Product Safety Commission concluded that the design is dangerous. Regulators warn that infants unrestrained in the sleepers could roll onto their stomachs during sleep and suffocate.
“Until the Rock ’n Play Sleeper’s recall, this item was the gift that I gave to friends and expecting parents,” Scothon said. “The Rock ’n Play Sleeper, like so many of our products, was also used extensively by Fisher-Price employees and their families. I assure you that everyone at Fisher-Price believes that every product we offer is safe, and we do not and would never sell any product about which we thought otherwise.
Mattel Chief Executive Ynon Kreiz said the company has made safety strides in recent years, creating an executive position to oversee product safety efforts and founding an expert council to provide recommendations during the design process.
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