In the News: February 10, 2020

Posted on by Harold Zinn

Global companies scramble to respond to Coronavirus in China
January 29, 2020 Washington Post
Some of the world’s largest corporations shuttered operations in China on Wednesday as the worsening coronavirus outbreak renewed concerns about their reliance on Chinese factories and threatened to take a lasting financial toll. With an official lockdown affecting more than 50 million people, consumer spending on restaurants, hotels and entertainment venues in China has plunged. Many factories have extended their customary closure beyond the end of the Lunar New Year celebration this week into at least the second week of February.

U.S. government experts, industry spar over asbestos testing in talc
February 4, 2020, Reuters
For the first time in nearly 50 years, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration examined asbestos testing for talc powders and cosmetics at a hearing on Tuesday, after traces of the known carcinogen were found in several such products, including Johnson & Johnson’s Baby Powder.

Important recalls often ignored. Here’s how to protect your family
February 3, 2020, KOMO
From dangerous dressers to hazardous hammers and exploding electronics, the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) announces about 300 recalls a year.Every single recall involves a potentially dangerous product that can injure, maim or kill unless it is repaired or replaced. Last week, the CPSC announced the recall of more than 165,000 inclined sleepers that presented a suffocation risk. Most people never respond to these recalls. Few recalls get much news coverage, so you could have a potentially dangerous product in your home or office and never know it.

Plastic film on toys and other children’s products can pose choking hazard
February 2, 2020, Northwest Georgia News
The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission is warning parents and caregivers to remove all plastic film coverings on toys and other children’s products because they can pose a choking hazard to children. The plastic film is used by some manufacturers to prevent mirrors or other surfaces from being scratched during shipping. This plastic film is part of the packaging and is not intended for use by children. CPSC is aware of two incidents in which young children nearly choked after they put the plastic film coverings from the mirror on their Fisher-Price Luv U Zoo Jumperoo into their mouths.

How Will Smart Consumer Product Companies Manage Sustainability Risk, And Opportunity, When It Comes To Their Licensees?
February 4, 2020, Forbes
For years, companies, including consumer products enterprises, paid little more than lip service to sustainability issues (with some notable exceptions). Today, that’s changing, at a reasonably fast clip. Giant companies have set themselves ambitious targets to cut carbon emissions, reduce water usage and recycle plastics and other materials. Many have hired chief sustainability officers to develop their corporate sustainability strategy, drive it forward and deliver on these targets. The proclamation by the Business Roundtable, which represents leaders of 181 of the world’s biggest companies, of new principles, including “protect[ing] the environment by embracing sustainable practices across our businesses,” is both emblematic of and an inspiration for this shift. But amid all this activity, there is one dimension that appears to be getting less dedicated attention than it should – and that’s brand licensing.

Britain to Seek Canada-Style Free Trade Deal With EU
February 2, 2020, New York Times
Last week, two days after Brexit, British officials pushed the European Union for a Canada-style free trade arrangement. Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab said that Britain will seek a deal that imposes very few tariffs even though he said Britain will not seek to align its regulations with the EU. “We are taking back control of our laws, so we are not going to have high alignment with the EU and legislative alignment with their rules,” Raab said. “We will want to cooperate, and we expect the EU to follow through on their commitments to a Canada-style free trade agreement. That’s what we are pursuing. EU officials fear that the U.K. could water down its environment or health and safety precautions, undermining EU businesses.

California Attorney General joins 18 states urging EPA for protection from forever chemicals
February 3, 2020, KMJNOW
California’s Attorney General is part of a multi-state coalition – urging the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency to protect communities from what they say are dangerous chemicals. Attorneys General from 19 states, including California’s Xavier Becerra are urging the EPA to proceed with rulemaking to cover the entire family of PFAS chemicals. PFAS are dubbed “forever chemicals” as they don’t break down in the environment and can accumulate in human bodies. They’re widely used in consumer products from nonstick cookware, water- and wrinkle-resistant clothing, to food packaging, even in firefighting foam.

How law firms can prevent phishing and malware
February 4, 2020, National Law Review
Law firms harbor information directly linked to politics, public figures, intellectual property, and sensitive personal information. Because lawyers rely on email to manage cases and interact with clients, hackers exploit technical vulnerabilities and people via email. After cybercriminals infiltrate a law firm’s systems in a successful phishing or malware attack, they leverage breached information for financial gain. Starting with email, law firms must control the availability, confidentiality, and integrity of data. Or they will suffer breaches that bring increased insurance premiums, loss of intellectual property, lost contract revenue, and reputational damage.

Blog: Next-Generation IoT Architecture: How ML-based Techniques Boost IoT Security
February 2, 2020, Perfectial Blog
Generally, IoT systems can be divided into two groups. The first ones are usually analytics solutions that aggregate information from a multitude of IoT sensors (data comes up through gateways) and then format or visualize it to help users discern patterns and actionable insights from their datasets. The second have much more difficult data models and both their upstream and downstream bandwidth are equally critical; there’s always a complex business logic involved in such platforms that’s used to 1) determine the needed adjustments based on received data and 2) send updated configurations to the devices to optimize performance. The IoT networks of the second type, popular with enterprises, are typically comprised of a great many entities and scaling them safely, by introducing new devices and data streams, is acutely challenging. Vulnerabilities accumulate exponentially as new elements and relationships are added to the network.

Posted in Chemical Hazards, Children's Products, Global Developments, Innovation, Organizational Development, Product Liability, Product Safety Rules, Product Standards, Risk Assessment, Supply Chain, Sustainability

In the News: February 3, 2020

Posted on by adk

CPSC Announces recalls of more than 165,000 inclined sleepers to prevent risk of suffocation
January 29, 2020, cpsc.gov
The CPSC announces today the following recalls are posted in cooperation with the firms listed below.  Recalls can be viewed at www.cpsc.gov.

  1. Summer Infant Recalls SwaddleMe By Your Bed Inclined Sleepers to Prevent Risk of Suffocation
  2. Evenflo Recalls Pillo Portable Napper Inclined Sleepers to Prevent Risk of Suffocation
  3. Delta Enterprise Corp. Recalls Incline Sleeper with Adjustable Feeding Position for Newborns to Prevent Risk of Suffocation
  4. Graco Recalls Little Lounger Rocking Seats to Prevent Risk of Suffocation

The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission is charged with protecting the public from unreasonable risks of injury or death associated with the use of thousands of types of consumer products under the agency’s jurisdiction. Deaths, injuries, and property damage from consumer product incidents cost the nation more than $1 trillion annually.

Trump drives to make toilets, dishwashers great again collides with companies product testing
January 29, 2020, Washington Post
Two engineers designed today’s toilets considered flushing marvels, able to clear an average of two pounds of paste and paper per flush, and four times as much as old commodes, despite using less than half as much water. So the two engineers were surprised when President Trump recently started complaining publicly about toilets. “People are flushing toilets 10 times, 15 times, as opposed to once,” Trump said at the White House last month. He also talked about toilets during a rally in Milwaukee two weeks ago.

How the Coronavirus could hurt Apple and Starbucks
January 29, 2020, New York Times
More companies are temporarily halting business in parts of China, as the outbreak spreads and the fear of contagion rises.
Here’s the latest:

Boeing expects cost of grounding 737 Max: Over $18 billion
January 29, 2020, New York Times
Boeing said on Wednesday that the costs associated with the grounding of the 737 Max were likely to surpass $18 billion, a significant increase over earlier forecasts.The new estimate, announced during Boeing’s quarterly earnings report, is the company’s most recent approximation of just how expensive it will be to return the Max to service, compensate airline customers and restart the shuttered 737 factory. Boeing continues to grapple with the fallout from the crashes of two Max jets in 2018 and 2019, which killed 346 people, leading to the worldwide grounding of the plane in March.

Six professionals to receive Certified Product Safety Professionals pins at international conference
January 24, 2020, EIN NewsWire
Six product safety professionals from a range of consumer product manufacturers, retailers and a service provider have been the first individuals to be designated as Certified Product Safety Professionals (CPSP) by the Society of Product Safety Professionals (SPSP). The professionals earned the designation by meeting the professional experience criteria, passing an examination, and completing a capstone case study presented to a review panel.  SPSP will present the professionals their pins and certifications at the annual symposium and training meeting of the International Consumer Product Health & Safety Organization (ICPHSO) being held in Orlando, Florida February 18-21.

Indiana teen issues dire warning after vaping puts him on life-support
January 28, 2020, WDRB
“If I would have just said no, it’s that simple.” Those were the words 17-year-old Tyler Ware told Fox 59 reporter Brett Kast as he sat in Peyton Manning Children’s Hospital, just days after being released from the ICU. He spent six-and-a-half days there on life support fighting a lung illness until a trip to the emergency room revealed something worse, according to a report by Fox 59. Tyler then revealed to doctors the possible cause. “Tyler was vaping,” an official said. “Because he was vaping, his lungs were damaged.

IoT security? We’ve heard of it, says UK.gov waving new regs
January 28, 2020, The Register
The British government has finally woken up to the relatively lax security of IoT devices and is lurching forward with legislation to make gadgets connected to the web more secure. The Department of Digital, Culture, Media and Sport said it will require makers of IoT hardware to ship devices with unique passwords that cannot be reset to a factory default setting.

Children’s Author Turned Brand Consultant Tells How Simple Storytelling Works For The Best Brands
January 29, 2020, Forbes
It’s easy to write a history about your company, listing when the company was established, who sits on the leadership team and what the key products are. It’s much harder to tell a compelling story that customers relate to, choose to buy, remember, and want to share with others. Simple storytelling often works best.

Litigation Forecast: How IoT and AI expose companies to increased tort privacy and cybersecurity litigation
January 22, 2020, Retail Consumer Products Law (Crowell Moring)
Crowell & Moring has released Litigation Forecast 2020: What Corporate Counsel Need to Know for the Coming Year.  For 2020, the Forecast focuses on how the digital revolution is giving rise to new litigation risks, and it explores trends in employment non-competes, the future of stare decisis, the role of smartphones in investigations and litigation, and more.

Major trends in testing, inspection, and certification
January 29, 2020, Digital Journal
The consumer goods and retails application is expected to hold the largest market share during the forecast period. The increase in disposable income and rapid urbanization in developing economies; high growth in product recalls across the world; high adoption of outsourcing service models by worldwide manufacturers; increased requirement for harmonized standards; surge in illicit trading, counterfeiting, and piracy practices across the world; and enforcement of rigorous government regulations and standards across various sectors are driving the growth of the TIC market.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Posted in Chemical Hazards, Children's Products, Global Developments, Innovation, Organizational Development, Product Liability, Product Safety Rules, Product Standards, Risk Assessment, Supply Chain, Sustainability

In the News: January 27, 2020

Posted on by adk

Wells-Fargo’s ex-chief fined $17.5 million over fake accounts
January 23, 2020, Seattle Times
When big companies do wrong, it’s rarely the big boss who pays the price. But Wells Fargo’s former chief executive John G. Stumpf was fined $17.5 million — the largest individual fine in the history of the bank’s main federal regulator — for his role in a toxic sales culture that foisted unwanted products and sham bank accounts on millions of customers.

CPSC: Avoid TV tip over incidents during Super Bowl live with safety tips from Anchor It!
January 23, 2020, cpsc.gov
Super Bowl LIV, scheduled to be played on February 2 in Miami, is just around the corner.  Millions of Americans each year watch the Super Bowl on TV either at home or with friends at parties.  In fact, many fans will buy new TVs ahead of the Big Game.  The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) wants to remind consumers to play it safe during these activities and to remember a few key safety tips regarding TVs.

Six professionals named as first group to become Certified Product Safety Professionals
January 24, 2020, EIN Newswire
Six product safety professionals from a range of consumer product manufacturers, retailers and a service provider have been the first group to be designated as Certified Product Safety Professionals (CPSP) by the Society of Product Safety Professionals (SPSP). The professionals earned the designation by meeting the professional experience criteria, passing an examination, and completing a capstone case study presented to a review panel.

State issues recall for more vaping products
January 23, 2020, Michigan Radio
Michigan’s Marijuana Regulatory Agency is recalling more than 9,000 vape cartridges by a Detroit company. The state says 8,020 of the cartridges were never sold, and will be destroyed. The other 1,360 cartridges were sold by Plan B Wellness in Detroit. The agency expanded a recall last week involving more than 20 different kinds of marijuana related products sold in the state.

Cuomo now proposes legalizing e-bikes, e-scooters across New York
January 23, 2020, Newsday
Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo on Thursday proposed legalizing electric bikes and electric scooters across New York, in what would be the first new modes of motorized transportation to be allowed on state roads in generations. Speaking at his Manhattan office, Cuomo said he’d like the legislation to pass by April 1 — and as early as next week. Late last month, he vetoed similar legislation — which also banned e-scooter rentals in Manhattan — that he said had insufficient safety provisions, including speed limits and helmet mandates.

Boeing’s responsibility buried in safety report on fatal 2009 Turkish airlines crash
January 21, 2020, Duva English
Manufacturer Boeing’s “risky design choices and faulty safety assessments” contributed to the 2009 crash of a Turkish Airlines flight out of Amsterdam Schipol Airport that killed nine people and injured 50, in contradiction to the Dutch Safety Board’s final report, the New York Times reported. The Schipol crash involved the Boeing 737 New Generation or 737-NG, an earlier model of the Boeing 737-Max, the grounded plane that has killed hundreds and caused one of the biggest crises in the company’s history.

Five ways companies can adopt ethic AI
January 23, 2020, Forbes
In 2014, Stephen Hawking said that AI would be humankind’s best or last invention. Six years later, as we welcome 2020, companies are looking at how to use Artificial Intelligence (AI) in their business to stay competitive. The question they are facing is how to evaluate whether the AI products they use will do more harm than good.

CPSC Guides for Manufacturers and Retailers
January, 2020, cpsc.gov
A resource guide for regulated products produced or sold by manufacturers, retailers, importers or distributors is among several guides produced by the safety agency to help businesses understand their responsibilities under CPSC regulations and statutes.

Verizon launches privacy focused search engine OneSearch
Januarya 14, 2020, cnet
We’ve all searched online for things we’d rather not have associated with ourselves forever. Embarrassing medical symptoms, deep dives into the world of true crime in the wee hours, or even that pair of shoes you looked at once but decided not to buy. Now Verizon wants to offer a search engine that won’t tie that information to you. The service, called OneSearch, launched Tuesday with the declaration that it won’t store records of what you search, create profiles of your usage or share your search data with advertisers.

Centre mulls heavy duty on Chinese toys as curing their influx is not a child’s play
January 22, 2020, New Indian Express
With a deluge of Chinese toys darkening the prospects of the domestic industry and also posing quality concerns, the Union government is considering to impose heavy duty on ‘Made in China’ toys, in a bid to keep their imports in check. Indian toy manufacturers have already requested the government for the same.

 

Posted in Chemical Hazards, Children's Products, Global Developments, Innovation, Organizational Development, Product Liability, Product Safety Rules, Product Standards, Risk Assessment

In the News: January 20, 2019

Posted on by adk

CPSC warns consumers to stop using Summer Infant USA’s  SwaddleMe By Your Bed sleeper
January 16, 2020, cpsc.gov
The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) recently warned the public about infant inclined sleepers.  Now CPSC is warning consumers about Summer Infant, Inc.’s SwaddleMe By Your Bed Sleeper.  Based on CPSC staff’s evaluation of the product, how it is used, and outside expert analysis, CPSC staff believes that the Summer Infant SwaddleMe By Your Bed Sleeper puts infants at risk of suffocation.  Although CPSC is not aware of any incidents or deaths involving the Summer Infant SwaddleMe By Your Bed Sleeper, CPSC urges consumers to stop using the product immediately.

Some parents illegally selling recalled baby sleepers
January 16, 2020, WRAL
The Consumer Product Safety Commission recently issued an urgent recall of inclined infant sleepers, but it appears many people either still don’t know about it, or just don’t realize the level of danger. Dozens of infants have died in the sleepers after suffocating, yet parents are still using them. 5 On Your Side found plenty of people reselling them online.

EPA looks at 3D printing emissions with CPSC
January 14, 2020, Material, Handling, Logistics
The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is increasing its scrutiny of 3D printing emissions just as recent predictions say the technology is just beginning to revolutionize manufacturing and the supply chain. Working in cooperation with the Consumer Products Safety Commission (CPSC), EPA is studying possible harmful emissions that are emitted during the 3D printing process. Also conducting research on 3D printer nanomaterials is the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST).

2020 CPSC outlook: A busy year unlikely
December 17, 2019, The National Law Review
As 2020 dawns – and with it jokes about perfect vision – the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) is feeling its way through a foggy vision of its future, but there are a few signs in view for CPSC-regulated companies. The CPSC’s future, of course, hinges on what its leadership will look like, and that is an open question.

Counterfeits hitting home: Consumers are being foiled by fake water filters
January 15, 2020, Fair Warning
For years, Montreal resident Brent George bought replacement water filters for his refrigerator from a local appliance store. Then one time he turned to Amazon, where he often shopped for other products. Besides being more convenient, the online filters he selected — sold by a third party and not by manufacturer Whirlpool — were also cheaper. Ultimately, George got more than he expected: an introduction to the hidden and potentially harmful world of counterfeit refrigerator water filters. Many consumers may be unaware of the risk of buying fake filters online, but sources in law enforcement and the appliance industry say it’s significant — and likely growing.

How secrecy in U. S. courts hobbles regulators meant to protect the public
January 17, 2020, Reuters
Something wasn’t right with the Rhino. Reports started trickling in to the Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) in 2005 of people being killed or injured in the Yamaha Motor Co. off-road vehicles when they tipped over. But no clear pattern emerged, and in the rough and tumble off-road world, accidents are common. The agency took no action.

Lifting inaccurate CPSC disclosure legislation
January 17, 2020, The National Law Review
As we wrote last year when the U.S. House of Representatives was debating a series of bills on narrow issues related to the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC), a broader push to reform the agency was likely to come in late 2019 or early 2020. Now, at least one shoe of that overhaul has dropped. Representative Bobby Rush (D-IL) has introduced the “Safety Hazard and Recall Efficiency Information Act,” or the SHARE Information Act (H.R. 5565), which would make two significant changes to the CPSC’s primary organic statute, the Consumer Product Safety Act (CPSA)

Editorial: You shouldn’t have to wait years to learn that a product you bought might endanger your child’s life
January 15, 2020, Chicago Sun Times
When an unsafe product puts children’s lives at risk, the public ought to know about it, without delay. Americans should be able to trust that the consumer and household products they buy don’t pose a danger in their homes, especially to children. When Mom and Dad buy a dresser for their toddler, they shouldn’t have to worry that it could topple over and severely injure —perhaps even kill — their child.

Europe mulls tougher rules for artificial intelligence
January 17, 2020, Bloomberg (Yahoo Finance News)
The European Union is considering new legally binding requirements for developers of artificial intelligence in an effort to ensure modern technology is developed and used in an ethical way.
The EU’s executive arm is set to propose the new rules apply to “high-risk sectors,” such as healthcare and transport, and suggest the bloc updates safety and liability laws, according to a draft of a so-called “white paper” on artificial intelligence obtained by Bloomberg. The European Commission is due to unveil the paper in mid-February and the final version is likely to change.

Recent IoT class actions highlight the need for manufacturers & vendors of connected products to be aware of liability risks
January 15, 2020, JD Supra
“Smart” products are present in our everyday lives, including such standard products as refrigerators, watches, fire alarms, door locks, security systems, and fitness trackers. These are only a few examples of the many IoT products on the market today. However, in spite of the significant benefits provided by connected products, the new technology raises thorny legal issues and is leading to litigation.

 

Posted in Chemical Hazards, Children's Products, Global Developments, Innovation, Organizational Development, Product Liability, Product Safety Rules, Product Standards, Risk Assessment

In the News: January 14, 2020

Posted on by adk

Ikea will pay $46 million to parents of toddler rushed to death by a dresser
January 6, 2020, The New York Times
The Swedish furniture retailer Ikea agreed to pay a $46 million settlement ihttps://www.weforum.org/agenda/2020/01/next-wave-consumer-advocacy/
n a wrongful-death lawsuit brought by the parents of a California toddler who was crushed to death by a popular dresser model that had been recalled after at least five other children were killed. On Monday, a lawyer for Joleen and Craig Dudek, whose son, Jozef, was killed in May 2017, announced the settlement, which was confirmed by an Ikea spokeswoman.

Consumer Reports: New bill would allow prompt public disclosure of product safety risks
January 9, 2020 Consumer Reports.org
The Consumer Product Safety Commission, the federal agency that oversees thousands of consumer goods, is typically bound by law to stay mum unless the manufacturer of the unsafe product agrees to when and how the news comes out. If the CPSC wants to alert the public and the manufacturer doesn’t agree, the manufacturer can sue the agency—so the agency typically keeps quiet. A new bill, introduced in Congress today by U.S. Representative Bobby L.Rush (D-Ill) seeks to change that.

‘I Honestly Don’t Trust Many People at Boeing’: A Broken Culture Exposed
January 10, 2020, The New York Times
The steady drip of bad news and embarrassing revelations from Boeing— culminating in Thursday’s release of 117 pages of damning internal communications — has revealed something more disturbing than one poorly designed plane. The very culture at Boeing appears to be broken, with some senior employees having little regard for regulators, customers and even co-workers.

The next wave of consumer advocacy
January, 2020, World Economic Forum
Over time, consumer rights, legislation, standards bodies, watchdogs, testing, labelling and information schemes established an organized consumer protection foundation. With grass-roots networks and international presence, consumer advocates kept up pressure on companies who exploited poorer consumers, polluted rivers or damaged air quality. They represented and supported consumers, building alert systems that stopped the importing of banned, hazardous products into new markets. They brought consumers directly into the process of standards-building at local and international levels, developed collaborative international testing protocols, and brought together consumer policymakers across borders to address wrongs.

CPSC warns consumers of serious tip-over hazard posed by Hodedah-hi4dr-4 drawer dressers
January 8, 2020, CPSC.gov
The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) is warning consumers to anchor Hodedah HI4DR four-drawer dressers to the wall or to place the dressers where children cannot get near them. CPSC intends to continue pressing the case for a recall with Hodedah. CPSC tested the Hodedah HI4DR dresser and found that it is unstable and can tip over if not anchored to the wall, posing serious tip-over and entrapment hazards that can result in injuries to children or even death.

What does the future of play look like: Tech driven toys at CES offer a glimpse
January 9, 2020, The Nevada Independent
Past a robotic litter box, rows of massage chairs, automated beverage dispensers and too many smart-home systems to count, a high-tech spin on a traditional toy snagged the attention of some Consumer Electronic Show passersby. Attendees clutched the tiny spacecraft — made from a cardboard cutout and decorated with markers — and guided them through the air. Thanks to a magnetic insert, the spacecraft’s journey appeared on a tablet in a video game-like presentation. The person’s hand movements controlled the vehicle’s destiny.

The unintended consequences of YouTube’s new ad policy for kids’ videos
January 9, 2020, Northeastern University
YouTube announced changes to its advertising policies for children viewing videos on the site. The changes are designed to protect against the collection of children’s personal information, but may have unintended consequences, says Northeastern assistant professor Keith Smith: Reducing the overall amount of content available for children and pushing them to streaming sites that are less child-friendly. YouTube officials say the company will ban all targeted advertising on videos

Going Old School: CPSC issues rare safety warning on dressers
January 9, 2020, The National Law Review
In an uncommon move, the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) on Wednesday issued a unilateral press release warning consumers of the need to anchor a particular brand and model of dressers. In its release, the CPSC wrote that it “intends to continue pressing the case for a recall with” the manufacturer.

House votes to designate PFAS forever chemicals as hazardous substances
January 10, 2020, cleveland.com
The U.S. House of Representatives on Friday passed legislation that would require the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency to designate so-called PFAS “forever chemicals” linked to numerous diseases as hazardous substances. It also calls for the EPA to set safety standards for the presence of the chemicals in drinking water, and to give grants that would help water companies remove them.

Arizona AG files consumer fraud lawsuit against vaping companies
January 7, 2020, The Daily Independent
Arizona Attorney General Mark Brnovich filed suit Tuesday against two companies that make vaping products charging that they have illegally targeted teens and mislead consumers about the amount of addictive nicotine in their products. Brnovich charges that Juul Labs and Eonsmoke “appealed to, targeted, and exploited a generation of youth.”
In the case of Juul, the nation’s largest vaping firm, he cited ads that he said feature “young, attractive women in suggesting or casual and fun poses.” Brnovich also said the pods marketed by Juul dispense more nicotine than cigarettes but are designed to be less harsh, a tactic he said that is aimed at getting young people addicted.

China’s market regulator clarifies recall obligations for consumer products
January 7, 2020, China Briefing
On November 26, 2019, China’s State Administration for Market Regulation (SAMR) released the Interim Provisions on the Recall of Consumer Products to be effective January 1, 2020. The regulation clarifies the recall obligations and responsibilities of both producers of consumer goods and operators selling, leasing, or repairing consumer goods.
According to the Interim Provisions, when a producer or other operators discover specific concerns on the consumer products they make or sell, they must report to provincial market regulators within two business days.

Posted in Chemical Hazards, Children's Products, Global Developments, Innovation, Organizational Development, Product Liability, Product Safety Rules, Product Standards, Risk Assessment, Supply Chain

In the New: January 6, 2020

Posted on by adk

Number of children swallowing dangerous magnets surges as industry largely polices itself
December 25, 2019, Washington Post
The number of children ingesting rare-earth magnets — powerful tiny balls that are a popular desk toy and can shred a child’s intestines — has skyrocketed in the three years since courts blocked the efforts of federal regulators to force changes to the industry, which largely holds the power to regulate itself.

Conservative judiciary fatal attraction to deregulation
December 27, 2019, The American Prospect
The Washington Post reported on the 1,600 cases of children ingesting high-powered rare-earth magnets used in desk toys, up six-fold from just three years ago. The magnet ingestion has become an epidemic  because the Tenth Circuit Court of Appeals ruled in 2016 that the Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) overreached by issuing an effective ban on the desk toys. One of the three judges who heard that case and ruled for the toy industry, leading three years later to a surge in children eating powerful magnets and ripping up their insides, is Neil Gorsuch, President Trump’s first pick for the U.S. Supreme Court.

Warning over button batteries on Christmas toys as toddler almost dies
December 25, 2019, News and Star (UK)
England’s National Health Service has advised parents to make sure that the small, flat batteries – which can be found in toys, festive lights, and musical Christmas cards – are kept away from children. It comes months after a two-year-old girl, Elsie-Rose, from Sheffield, nearly died after swallowing one.

College programs take proactive approach to helmet safety
December 15, 2019, Norman Transcript
As education has evolved about head injuries in football over the last decade, college football programs are taking a proactive approach to ensure the helmets that players wear meet proper safety standards. At Purdue, all helmets are manufactured by Riddell, with 80 percent of the helmets SpeedFlex models and the other 20 percent SpeedIcon. The SpeedFlex models hold a 4.5-star safety rating, while the SpeedIcon’s are at 4 stars.

Tel Aviv is world’s first city to require license plates and helmets for shared electric scooters
December 24, 2019, Jewish Press
The Tel Aviv-Yafo Municipality has issued various unprecedented new regulations for shared electric scooters, aimed at keeping pedestrians and scooter riders safe. The new regulations include equipping all electric scooters with helmets, installing license plates, recycling used batteries, lowering the speed of the scooters in certain areas, and preventing the usage of scooters in restricted areas.

CPSC Reporting: Best practices for investigating safety complaints
December 23, 2019, Retail and Consumer Products Law (blog)
You’ve just received news that a consumer’s experience with your product did not go as expected. They’ve called, e-mailed, left a review, or even sent a tweet about a negative experience. As you address the consumer’s concerns, it is important to recognize if any reportable safety issues have been raised. If so, there is certain information that should be collected in order to complete the required section 15(b) report to the CPSC.

Quitting vaping tough for teens: ‘It’s gonna suck’
December 26, 2019, Twin Cities Pioneer Press
Stigma and fear around telling family and friends, or asking for help, can delay important conversations, teens who’ve kicked their vaping addictions said, and those under 18 can’t legally access nicotine replacement products like nicotine gum or patches without a prescription or help from an adult. As record numbers of Minnesota students report they’ve used vaping products, health officials said they’re doing what they can to support teens who want to quit. But there aren’t perfect solutions yet to do that.

Sen. Maria Cantwell discusses investigation into Consumer Product Safety Commission
December 23, 2019, High Plains Public Radio
The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission failed to protect American consumers. That is what a Senate committee recently concluded in a new report looking into how the agency responded to complaints about three products – a jogging stroller, an inclined baby sleeper and residential elevators. High Plaines Public Radio discussed the results of this investigation with Senator Maria Cantwell, Democrat from Washington state. She is the ranking Democrat on the Senate committee that has oversight responsibilities over the commission or CPSC.

CPSC warns of hoverboard dangers after 1 caused a house fire
December 26, 2019, CBS Local
The Consumer Product Safety Commission is warning the public of the dangers of hoverboards after one started a house fire in Hurst, Texas. The local fire department responded to the fire and reported that a single upstairs bedroom was aflame and “considerable smoke damage” was throughout the house.

Earbuds, fidget spinners and even a Christmas ornament: What US emergency room medics have been removing from patients’ orifices this year
December 27, 2019, Daily Mail
Emergency room medics have had a busy year of removing unexpected items from people’s orifices. The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission‘s (CPSC) database documented the emergency room visits throughout 2019. The rectum appeared to be the most common place for objects to become embedded closely followed by ears and the throat.

Elevator safety law awaits Cuomo’s signature months after horrific accident
December 23, 2019, New York Post
Legislation bolstering elevator safety — just months after a man was crushed to death in a lift mishap in a Kips Bay apartment building — awaits Gov. Andrew Cuomo’s signature. The “Elevator Safety Act” would have the state license mechanics and others who oversee maintenance of 70,000 elevators in the city’s high rises and require more extensive education and training. The tragic death of Sam Waisbren in Manhattan Promenade building is still under investigation by the city DOI and an attorney for the family is about to file a wrongful death suit in the case.

 

 

Posted in Chemical Hazards, Children's Products, Global Developments, Innovation, Organizational Development, Product Liability, Product Safety Rules, Product Standards, Risk Assessment, Uncategorized

In the News: January 2, 2020

Posted on by adk

Schumer demands probe into recalled goods sold at TJ Maxx-Marshalls
December 22, 2019, New York Post
Sen. Chuck Schumer raged against a trio of big-box bargain stores for selling potentially deadly products after they were recalled — while warning that consumers may unknowingly have them as holiday gifts. Schumer appeared outside an Upper East Side branch of TJ Maxx to call for a federal investigation into the store and its sister outlets, Marshalls and HomeGoods, which have admitted selling 19 products even after they were recalled for being safety hazards.

Age labels on toys are critical guidelines that many adults ignore
December 22, 2019, Fox11
A national survey shows lot of well-meaning adults are breaking an important rule when it comes to buying toys. That might explain why some toys get a lot of play, while others end up gathering dust. It’s also why some children end up in the emergency room. Kids like toys that are cool and fun. Parents want toys that are fun and safe. Toy makers know that age is another critical toy factor. The thing to remember about age labels is they’re not hard, fast rules. They’re simply guidelines, but those guidelines reflect a lot of research and testing.

Toy stores hope playtime inside their shops leads to sales
December 21, 2019, Times Leaders
Toy stores have long offered activities and interactive elements, like the floor piano at FAO Schwarz that Tom Hanks danced on in “Big.” Toys R Us, in its heyday, drew crowds for its Pokemon tournaments, but its appeal faded with Amazon’s rise. Now a new generation of toy stores hopes to capitalize on the demise of the old Toys R Us by emphasizing playtime. They are fighting for a chunk of the $28 billion U.S. toy market, which today is spent mostly at Amazon, Walmart and Target.

In-home drowning safety information center
December, 2019, cpsc.gov
The consumer safety agency shares information on how to reduce risk of in-home drowning which continue to be a threat to children. Nearly 90 kids drown each year due to in-home accidents.

Opinion: Confidence in the Max aircraft will be restored before confidence in Boeing
December 20, 2019, The Hill
As the world tries to determine when the Boeing Max aircraft will return to service, a more pressing question is when will confidence in Boeing be restored? Once a company known for proudly blazing a trail of unprecedented safety, Boeing has been plagued by reports of rushed production and lowered safety standards for years.

Notre Dame fire wakes the world up to dangers of lead dust
December 22, 2019, Minneapolis Star Tribune
It took a blaze that nearly destroyed Paris’ most famous cathedral to reveal a gap in global safety regulations for lead, a toxic building material found across many historic cities.After the Notre Dame fire in April spewed dozens of tons of toxic lead-dust into the atmosphere in just a few hours, Paris authorities discovered a problem with the city’s public safety regulations: There was no threshold for them to gauge how dangerous the potentially-deadly pollution was from the dust that settled on the ground.

In new year, two new health protections go into effect in California
December 20, 2019, NRDC
In 2020, Californians will know more about what’s in their cleaning products and new furniture and mattresses will be safer. Starting January, upholstered furniture, certain children’s products, and mattress foam sold in California can no longer contain added toxic flame-retardant chemicals. This will eliminate a significant source of exposure to these chemicals, which are associated with a host of health effects, particularly for children and firefighters. The state has adopted flammability standards that provide fire safety without the unnecessary use of these chemicals.

Amid chemical industry lobbying, Trump EPA reconsiders risk of cancer-causing ethylene oxide
December 20, 2019, Chicago Tribune
Facing tougher restrictions, companies that manufacture and use ethylene oxide are pushing the Trump administration to undercut federal scientists and adopt a dramatically weaker standard for the cancer-causing gas. The dispute pits Dow Chemical, Shell and other industry giants against the Environmental Protection Agency’s career staff, its scientific advisers and academic researchers, who concluded during the past decade that ethylene oxide is far more dangerous than previously thought.

Lawmakers back to square one on forever chemicals
December 21, 2019, The Hill
Lawmakers must largely start anew after a major attempt to regulate a cancer-linked chemical that is spreading into the water supply across the United States was stripped from legislation this week, striking the best bet in years to address the problem. The class of chemicals abbreviated as PFAS is used in products ranging from raincoats to nonstick cookware to firefighting foam. It’s been deemed a “forever chemical” due to its lingering persistence in the environment and in the human body.

EPA publishes final list of 20 high priority chemicals
December 23, 2019, National Law Review
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) published on December 20, 2019, the final list of high-priority chemicals.  These chemicals will be the next 20 chemicals to undergo risk evaluation under the amended Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA).  The 20 chemicals consist of seven chlorinated solvents, six phthalates, four flame retardants, formaldehyde, a fragrance additive, and a polymer precursor:

 

Posted in Chemical Hazards, Children's Products, Global Developments, Innovation, Organizational Development, Product Liability, Product Safety Rules, Product Standards, Risk Assessment, Supply Chain

In the News: December 16, 2019

Posted on by adk

Solving for stupid. How far should the CPSC stretch to address foreseeable misuse?
December 11, 2019, Retail Consumer Products Law (Crowell & Moring)
As products liability lawyers, we spend our days focused on the nature and proof of defectiveness.  The tort law recognizes limitations on claims that products have defects when there are obvious dangers and user conduct defenses (think drunk driving).  Contributory negligence, whether from failure to follow instructions or warnings, reckless behavior, or frankly, deliberate misuse of an otherwise safe product, is a well-recognized defense to product liability claims.  Yet misuse defenses are disfavored at the CPSC—and often labeled victim blaming—even though the defect rules written by the Commission direct the CPSC to consider the product liability law.

College dorm bunk beds can be dangerous
December 13, 2019, TeenVogue
Dylan Hernandez, a freshman at San Diego State University (SDSU), fell from his dorm room bunk bed on the morning of November 7. Hours after his roommate helped him climb back into his loft, that same roommate discovered him “pulseless” and “foaming at the mouth,” according to a medical report from the San Diego County Medical Examiner’s Office and an emergency call to university police. The next day, Dylan was pronounced dead; the cause of his death was “blunt force injuries to the head.” He was 19 years old.

Scientists convert plastics into useful chemicals using sunlight
December 11, 2019, Phys.org
Chemists at Nanyang Technological University, Singapore (NTU Singapore) have discovered a method that could turn plastic waste into valuable chemicals by using sunlight. In lab experiments, the research team mixed plastics with their catalyst in a solvent, which allows the solution to harness light energy and convert the dissolved plastics into formic acid—a chemical used in fuel cells to produce electricity.

CPSC Ombudsman: Best practices guidance including additional steps beyond meeting legal requirements
CPSC.gov
In addition to meeting the legal requirements described on the Business Education page, you─as a manufacturer or importer─should take additional steps to ensure that your product not only meets or exceeds the requirements of federal safety laws, but also is designed and manufactured as safely as possible.  Here is a brief outline of some of recommendations, including links to additional in-depth resources:

China’s Hard-Liners Win a Round in Trump’s Trade Deal
December 14, 2019, New York Times
A year and a half into the trade war, China seems to have a winning strategy: Stay tough and let the Trump administration negotiate with itself. Mr. Trump outlined a partial trade deal that deferred new tariffs on $160 billion a year in Chinese-made goods, a move that would have had him taxing virtually everything China sells to the United States. He also agreed for the first time to broadly reduce tariffs he had already imposed on Chinese goods.

Legal vapes bought in stores made people sick. But the CDC doesn’t ask where they were sold
December 13, 2019, USA Today
After new reports of lung illnesses linked to legal THC vapes, cannabis advocates and opponents can agree on one thing: Government officials should give consumers more information about where the dangerous products were purchased. The warnings about vaping, prompted by the national lung injury outbreak the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said  has sickened 2,409 and left 52 dead, began with no distinction between nicotine and marijuana-based THC.

Urgent Care Advocate: Avoid ER this holiday season
December 13, 2019, Blue Ridge Now
An urgent care staff member says the holidays are a busy time for the emergency department? Changes in diet and alcohol consumption, respiratory problems, stress, travel, cold weather and not paying attention to one’s health are all factors in common holiday illnesses and injuries. He wants you to avoid the emergency department this season with these tips.

Congressman introduces legislation to research unsafe use of electric scooters
December 12, 2019, Office of Congressman Albio Sires
Representative Albio Sires (D-NJ), a senior member of the House Transportation & Infrastructure Committee, introduced the Standardized Assessment for Electric (SAFE) Scooters Act to study nationwide instances on the unsafe use of electric scooters and recommend solutions. The bill requires the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) to study instances of the unsafe use of electric scooters. Reports from around the country have highlighted the fact that, although electric scooters are a useful asset to public transportation, many individuals unwisely operate electric scooters while under the influence of alcohol or operate them in a way that violates traffic laws and endanger themselves, pedestrians, and other motorists.

What is integrity? And why does it matter?
December 11, 2019, HR Technologist
What is integrity? While it’s a common component of companies’ mission statements, it can be hard to pin down precisely what integrity means to employees in their everyday routine. Cheating is taken as a sign of a lack of integrity, and treated so seriously, because a person who is willing to cut corners on a test may be willing to ignore other rules.  In a more positive light, a company with a culture of integrity is better for employees to work, likely makes better products, and is probably more secure in the long term.

Boat safety law proposed after Southern California fire killed 34
December 13, 2019, Press Democrat
A group of California congressional members have proposed tighter safety standards for small boats after a diving charter vessel burned and sank in September, killing 34 people. Only five people — the captain and four crew members — managed to escape after the 75-foot (23-meter) Conception caught fire on Sept. 2 off the Santa Barbara coast, northwest of Los Angeles. The boat burned to the waterline. One crew member was among the dead.

 

Posted in Chemical Hazards, Children's Products, Global Developments, Innovation, Organizational Development, Product Liability, Product Safety Rules, Product Standards, Risk Assessment

In the News: December 9, 2019

Posted on by adk

Walmart and Buy Buy Baby join Amazon and eBay in ending sales of inclined sleepers linked to infant deaths
December 5, 2019, Washington Post
Walmart and Buy Buy Baby plan to stop selling infant inclined sleepers, popular products that federal safety regulators recently warned the public to stop using after they were linked to more than 70 accidental deaths, the Consumer Product Safety Commission said Thursday. Walmart and Buy Buy Baby plan to stop selling infant inclined sleepers, popular products that federal safety regulators recently warned the public to stop using after they were linked to more than 70 accidental deaths, the Consumer Product Safety Commission said Thursday.

Acting CPSC Chair Adler commends Amazon, buybuyBABY, eBay, and Walmart for removing inclined-sleep products from product listings
December 5, 2019, cpsc.gov
He says in statement: “I applaud Amazon, buybuy BABY, eBay, and Walmart for their decision to help protect our most vulnerable population by removing infant inclined-sleep products from their product listings. In doing so, they have shown commendable corporate leadership by affirming their commitment to product safety. Their actions will save children’s lives.”

Carbon Monoxide Poisonings Spike After Big Storms. Portable Generators Are A Culprit
December 4, 2019, NPR
To Michelle Seifer, the timing was just a coincidence. After losing power in a summer storm, she came down with flu-like symptoms. It wasn’t until two days later, when a carbon monoxide detector activated and a utility company worker tested levels in Seifer’s home, that she learned she was being poisoned by the portable generator she had been running in her open garage.

ISO publishes first drone safety standards
December 5, 2019, Aerospace Testing International
The ISO has announced a set of international standards covering quality, safety, security and etiquette for the operation of commercial drones. The standards have been produced by the International Organisation for Standardisation (ISO) after a year-long consultation with drone operators, academics and businesses. The ISO said the standards, which are the first in a series to be published will help shape future regulation and legislation for commercial drone operation. The product manufacturing standards for drones are due to be published next year.

CDC cautions people to avoid e-cigarette products
December 5, 2019, News-Medical.net
Although e-cigarettes have been on the market for years, recent reports of vaping-linked illnesses have brought serious attention to these products. More than 2,000 people in the United States have been diagnosed with a condition called EVALI, or e-cigarette or vaping product use associated lung injury. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), this includes: cough, shortness of breath or chest pain, nausea, vomiting or diarrhea, fatigue, and fever or weight loss.

After man dies hanging Christmas lights, lighting professionals offer crucial safety tips
December 4, 2019,  ABC 12 News
A father from Texas fell from a rooftop while hanging Christmas lights and died from head trauma. It happened while a man was hanging the lights for his clients. In mid-Michigan, the Hayward Brothers are professionals, transforming homes and businesses into a winter wonderland. The Consumer Product Safety Commission says there are over 200 decorating-like injuries each day during the holiday season. Most of those incidents are falls. The pros, Chris and Teddy Hayward, say protecting yourself against injury or death begins with proper equipment.

Latest Tests Disprove FDA Claim of Asbestos in Johnson’s Baby Powder, J&J Says
December 4, 2019, Insurance Journal
Johnson & Johnson said on Tuesday that recent tests showed that Johnson’s Baby Powder was free of asbestos, after U.S. Food and Drug Administration investigations reported trace amounts of the material in the product earlier this year. A total of 155 tests were conducted by two different third-party labs using four different testing methods on samples from the same bottle tested by the FDA’s contracted lab, the company said.

What has Dallas learned about e-scooters over the past 17 months
December 4, 2019, Dallas Business Journal
But what exactly has Dallas learned about electric scooters in the 17 months they’ve been street legal? One, they’re popular. There have been nearly 4-million rides since they debuted in June 2018. And two, safety concerns have not been solved.

German prosecutors raid Volkswagen offices in diesel probe
December 3, 2019, Bloomberg
Volkswagen AG offices were raided by German prosecutors as part of a probe into diesel engines, marking a fresh setback for the manufacturer’s efforts to draw a line under an emission-tests cheating scandal that erupted four years ago. The search was “directed against individual defendants” and related to diesel vehicles with EA288 engines, VW said in a statement.

How companies can build ethical supply chains on a global scale
December 5, 2019, Supply Chain Brain
What constitutes ethical practices in global supply chains can vary by country. Yet companies still need to uphold broad ethical standards for the treatment of workers and environmental sustainability. Bribery, too, is a common problem encountered by procurement professionals. In this conversation  supply chain professionals offer insights on how organizations can engage their procurement teams in positive ethics, as well as the consequences of failing to do so.

 

Posted in Chemical Hazards, Children's Products, Global Developments, Innovation, Organizational Development, Product Liability, Product Safety Rules, Product Standards, Risk Assessment, Supply Chain

In the News: December 2, 2019

Posted on by adk

Dozens of infant deaths have been tied to a popular baby product but regulators are too paralyzed to act
November 23, 2019, Washington Post
A paralyzing conflict inside the nation’s product safety regulator has prevented the agency from taking action against a popular baby product that studies have linked to at least 48 infant deaths over 27 years and that public health officials say should be banned, according to a Washington Post investigation. The cause of the breakdown is a small team inside the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission that does not believe the product — padded crib bumpers — played a role in most, if any, of the infants’ deaths, derailing the agency’s attempts to regulate or ban crib bumpers.

Lime Scooters lose contract to operate on Auckland’s streets
November 29, 2019, RNZ.com
Lime and Wave e-scooters will be gone from the streets of Auckland, after the regulator decided not to renew the company’s contract. Auckland Transport and the city council announced today other e-scooter companies had been granted renewals or new licences – Beam, Neuron and Jump – alongside the existing operator Flamingo.Lime and Wave will be required to have their scooters deactivated by midnight on Monday and physically off the streets by next Friday.The Council said safety was paramount, and the other four operators had better safety profiles, including self-braking when going down hills.

TJ Maxx, Marshalls sold recalled products, including items linked to infant fatalities
November 27, 2019, ABC News
Nineteen products that were sold to hundreds of consumers at various T.J. Maxx, Marshalls and HomeGoods stores have been recalled by the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission. The new warning to consumers was issued Tuesday after it was discovered that the stores, which are owned by TJX Companies, sold the 19 different products that had previously been recalled between 2014 and 2019, according to the CPSC.

The Toy Association issues statement in response to U.S. PIRG’s 2019 Trouble-in-Toyland Release
November 22, 2019, The Toy Association
U.S. PIRG uses the headline “Trouble in Toyland” for its annual report to needlessly frighten parents with baseless claims. What PIRG doesn’t tell you (because it would not grab headlines) is that toys continue to be one of the safest consumer product categories found in the home.  `U.S. toy safety requirements include more than 100 standards and tests to ensure that toys are safe. These standards go above and beyond those for other consumer products. There are strict limits for lead and other chemicals in toys, internationally-emulated limits on sound level output, a highly effective small parts regulation that was developed with the help of pediatricians, and strict standards prohibiting the use of magnets in any toy part that is small enough to be swallowed.

Getting kids off the vape: Blumenthal says Trump is ‘succumbing to industry pressure’
November 23, 2019, wnpr.org
Forty-seven people have died in recent months from vaping-related illnesses, and there’s rising concern around the country about addiction levels among young people. President Donald Trump met with executives from the tobacco industry, along with public health leaders, to talk about vaping. But one federal lawmaker from Connecticut doesn’t expect anything to come of it.

Democratic senators send letter urging updates to toy gun regulations
November 21, 2019, Newsweek
A trio of Democratic senators sent a letter Thursday to the acting chairman of the Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) urging the agency to update rules governing the appearance of toy guns and nonlethal firearms, which can be mistaken by law enforcement for deadly weapons. “It is past time for the Department to revise its toy and imitation gun regulations and for the CPSC to strengthen non-powder gun regulations,” the letter says. “It is imperative that the CPSC find a path forward on updating” the standard for non-powder guns.

Study finds increasing rate of eye injuries from non-powder firearms among children
November 25, 2019, News-Medical.net
A new study conducted by researchers at the Center for Injury Research and Policy of the Abigail Wexner Research Institute at Nationwide Children’s Hospital investigated nonpowder firearm injuries treated in U.S. emergency departments (EDs) among children younger than 18 years from 1990 through 2016. The study, published today in Pediatrics, found an estimated 364,133 children were treated in U.S. EDs for injuries related to non-powder firearms during the study period, going from 16,456 injuries in 1990 to 8,585 injuries in 2016.

Intertek launches cybersecurity certification program for consumer-connected products
November 27, 2019, Electronic Products
Cybersecurity has become critical to protecting connected devices, from home appliances to wearables, from malicious attacks that compromise a consumer’s personal data. As more smart devices are connected vulnerabilities are identified in new products. To manage these risks, Intertek has launched a product testing and certification program that enables manufacturers and brands to assess their connected consumer products’ cybersecurity.

Kaiser Health News
November 25, 2019 KHN.org
A round-up of news from major news organizations/USA Today: Vape juice can kill kids. A vaping law’s slow rollout left them at risk of nicotine poisoning…
Federal regulators this year stepped up efforts to protect young children from a deadly vaping threat: accidents involving liquid nicotine in bottles with enticing candy colors and flavors. In February, the Consumer Product Safety Commission sent out notices about a safety requirement that it had previously ignored. In addition to child-resistant caps, vape juice containers must dramatically limit how much can spill out of an open bottle. A vial can contain enough poison to kill four toddlers. But nine months later – and nearly four years after a federal law called for flow restrictors – dangerous and illegal bottles remain on shelves across the country, a USA TODAY investigation has found.

YouTube urged to restrict ads in videos for kids
November 22, 2019, mediapost.com
YouTube is facing new pressure to restrict ads that surround videos aimed at children who use the platform. Senator Ed Markey (D-Massachusetts) on Friday urged the company to prohibit child-oriented videos that include product placement, as well as “unboxing” videos — which often feature young influencers opening toys — on YouTube. “Kids watching videos that are directed to children on YouTube should benefit from the same protections against damaging and unsuitable advertising that children watching YouTube kids enjoy,” Markey (D-Massachusetts) writes in a letter sent to Google CEO Sundar Pichai.

Research grant funding available on managing PFAS
November 28, 2019, CBS News
Millions in funding is available to expand research on managing a broad group of substances that can have major impacts on the environment, especially in rural areas. They are called per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances, and such PFAS are described as durable chemicals and materials that include oil, water, temperature and fire resistance properties, which make them last a long time in the environment. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency is working to help rural and agricultural communities address the issues caused by these substances and devise actions people can take to address them.

Posted in Chemical Hazards, Children's Products, Global Developments, Innovation, Organizational Development, Product Liability, Product Safety Rules, Product Standards, Risk Assessment, Uncategorized