U.S. panel to consider ban of baby bath seats

By CNN Consumer Safety Editor Julie Vallese

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- Consumer groups are trying to get the government to ban baby bath seats as unsafe in a case that raises the question of whether such government intervention is warranted against products that are not defective, just used irresponsibly.

The groups, led by the Consumer Federation of America, contend that baby bath seats "pose an unreasonable risk of injury and death to children. Each year at least eight babies die as a result of a drowning associated with bath seat use. Drowning typically occurs when the infant tips over, climbs out of, or slides throughout the product."

Their petition, to be considered by the Consumer Product Safety Commission on Wednesday, also says the seats offer "a false sense of security," which "leads to increased risk-taking behavior among those using the product even when the irresponsible nature of the caregivers is taken into account."

Baby bath seats or rings are intended to assist in bathing infants. The child either sits in a plastic seat with leg openings that have suction cups which attach to the tub or in a ring where the child sits directly on the tub's surface or on a mat attached to the legs of the bath ring. It is recommended for children 6 months or older.

Though the products are not considered defective, a ban is being considered, said CPSC Chairwoman Ann Brown, because baby bath seats "encourage dangerous consumer behavior by instilling a false sense of security in a parent, who would normally never leave a baby alone in water -- not even for a second."

But former CPSC member Carol Dawson, now a member of a group called Consumer Alert that monitors the growth of government regulation, counters:

"I think the overall issue here is how safe can a product be? Is there a risk in banning a product that is used for convenience, and exposing consumers to even greater risk -- that is, bathing their babies without them -- may lead to drowning more often than bathing their children with them."

A ban would have a major impact on the company Safety 1st - the largest manufacturer of bath seats, selling about 1 million each year at a retail price of $12 or $13. Safety 1st manufactures more than 300 child-care products, including booster seats, potty seats, nursery monitors, walkers and activity toys.

"All evidence surrounding injuries or deaths while bathing infants in tubs is that it is unreasonable for any person to leave an infant alone in a bathtub for any length of time, unattended," the company said in a statement. "Parents and caregivers know this and would never leave a baby alone in bathtubs or around water. The product itself does not cause a child drowning. It's parental neglect."

Another company, Fisher Price, discontinued manufacture of the product in 1993 because of the difficulties in advising consumers of the potential risk.

Mother and pediatric nurse Caroline Brummel favors a ban, based on her own personal experience. Her daughter Ameila slipped out of her baby bath seat when she was 6 months old. Brummel says she turned away from the tub for less than a minute. When she turned around her daughter was at the bottom of the tub, eyes and mouth open. The little girl survived.

"I think they should be banned," Brummel said. "I think that the parents in the world need to know they are 100 percent responsible for holding their child up in any water situation."

In 1994 the CPSC voted 2-1 against banning the manufacture of baby bath seats, opting instead to work with the industry to initiate a public information campaign focusing on the safety risks of leaving a child unattended in the bathtub.

The CPSC says 78 infants have drowned since 1983 while using baby bath seats -- 53 of them since it voted against the ban in 1994. The victims ranged in age from 5 to 20 months, but the majority were about 7 months old.

All but three of the deaths happened when the child was left unattended by the caregiver in the bathtub. In two of the cases where the child was not left alone, the baby was trapped in the bath seat and the adult was unable to free the infant.

"Baby bath seats are an invitation to danger," said Mary Ellen Fise, general counsel of the Consumer Federation and author of the petition to ban the seats. "The assembly line for this product should be shut down immediately."

A report to the commission this year from by the agency's Hazard Identification and Reduction Office concluded:

 •Consumers do leave infants alone in bath rings and seats.

 •Death can occur within a few minutes.

 •The intended age user is developmentally capable of creating a hazardous situation.

 •Suction cups currently used on bath rings and seats will not adhere to tubs that conform to the government standard for non-slip tub surfaces.

The report also found that despite product and manufacturer warnings, research shows that leaving a child alone in the bath seat is "foreseeable use or misuse of the product."

Brown, the commission chairwoman, wanted to ban the seats in 1994. But now she says, "I personally don't think a ban is your only but best answer. There should be some things we can do... This is not a complicated product to make it more secure."

Fran Smith, executive director of the non-profit Consumer Alert, told CNN: "It is not the CPSC mission to tell the public every product is perfectly safe. It is their mission to say that safer and safer products are being introduced all the time, that parents and caregivers have the responsibility to use them correctly."

The commission will vote on how to proceed May 30.