Child Safety

Child Safety

EMILY's List women have been working to protect children’s safety for over three decades. They have consistently sponsored, co-sponsored and voted for legislation that works to increase consumer protection for products used by families and children. They have worked to pass legislation on safe toys, cribs, vaccinations, medications, as well as infant formula among other products.

In 2007 alone, two landmark child safety bills introduced by EMILY’s List Representatives became laws. Rep. Jan Schakowsky introduced a kid’s transportation safety bill that required safer features on cars including window obstruction technology, larger rear view visibility and transmission safety measures. Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz introduced legislation that would require greater pool safety measures including drain covers and physical barriers to pools. The bill was an effort to reduce child drowning, the second leading cause of death for children ages one to fourteen.

EMILY’s List women also supported the Consumer Product Safety Improvement Act of 2008 which included regulations on children’s products and a ban on drop-side cribs, which could potentially protect up to 10,000 infants and toddlers a year.  

Up to 10,000 Babies Will Be Protected From Crib Injuries Each Year. Analysis of emergency room visits released in February 2011 showed that nearly 10,000 infants and toddlers are injured each year by crib and playpen accidents. In 2008, with support from EMILY’s List women, Congress passed the Consumer Product Safety Improvement Act which included a ban on drop-side cribs and regulations on children’s products. The rule from the 2008 Consumer Product Safety Improvement Act was put into effect in June of 2011. The researchers who studied nearly 20 years of ER data say that the ban will likely reduce those injury numbers. [AP, 2/17/11]

Introduction of Child Safety Rules Shows Decrease in Accidental Injury. From 1995 to 2008 common causes of child visits to the emergency room included poisoning, accidental striking by an object and traffic accidents. Thanks to better labels and more child safety rules on cars and household goods, the rates for all three forms of injury have shown steady decline among children ages 1-14. Among adolescents both poisoning and motor vehicle traffic injury rates have declined steadily and accidental striking has shown an overall decrease as well. [Federal Interagency Forum on Child and Family Statistics, accessed 3/14/12]

Child Injury Rates Decrease, But Remain Significant. Child injury rates have declined in the past two decades, but unintentional injuries continue to be the leading cause of death for children ages 1-14. And, nonfatal injuries remain significant causes of disability, morbidity and reduced quality of life among children. [Federal Interagency Forum on Child and Family Statistics, accessed 3/14/12]