Energy and Commerce Subcommitte Approves Schakowsky's Child Product Safety Legislation

ENERGY AND COMMERCE SUBCOMMITTEE APPROVES SCHAKOWSKY'S CHILD PRODUCT SAFETY LEGISLATION

Washington, D.C. — The Energy and Commerce Subcommittee on Commerce, Trade and Consumer Protection today approved Congresswoman Jan Schakowsky's (D-IL) "Danny Keysar Child Product Safety Notification Act,... H.R. 1699. The bill will now be referred to the full committee where it is likely to easily pass.

"This bill will help keep dangerous, recalled products away from our children,... said U.S. Representative Jan Schakowsky. "It will decrease the needless and preventable injuries and deaths by making the recall of children's products more effective....

H.R. 1699, the "Danny Keysar Child Product Safety Notification Act... would require that durable products for babies and children include a postage-paid registration card for quick notification of parents in the event of a product recall. Under current law, companies are not required to include a recall registration card with their products. In addition, actual notices of a recall are often dependent on news outlets picking up the story and spreading the word. Schakowsky's bill would correct this problem by enabling manufacturers to directly and immediately contact each parent who bought a product that has been recalled.

Schakowsky's bill is named after Danny Keysar, the 17-month old son of Linda Ginzel and her husband, Boaz Keysar, who died when the Playskool Travel-Lite portable crib he had been napping in at his babysitter's home collapsed. The rails of the crib folded into a "V...-shaped wedge when he stood up and he was strangled to death. The tragic accident happened five years after the crib had been recalled. Sadly, Danny's parents, his caregiver, or the state safety inspector who visited the home just eight days before Danny's death were completely unaware of the recall. Had Danny's Act been in effect, there would have been a much greater chance of saving Danny's life — and the six children who have since died from the Travel-Lite.