The Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) voted to entirely ban sale or resale of drop side cribs in the United States today after dozens of infants and children died due to the furniture style during this decade alone.
The decision by the CPSC to ban the traditional style of cribs, on which one side adjustably moves up and down, was unanimous. CPSC chair Inez Tenenbaum commented to press that the move to outright ban the style of crib was likely to reduce infant deaths:
“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.
The new regulations regarding drop side cribs will come into effect in June. Hotels and daycare centers, also subject to the regulations, have two years to replace crib inventory in their facilities. Drop side cribs were cited in 32 infant deaths since the year 2000, and are suspected in 14 further infant deaths in the past five years.
