Posted on 08/05/2022 12:49:40 PM PDT by nickcarraway
Congress has passed a bipartisan bill named after a toddler who died after ingesting a battery. Reese's Law, named for Reese Hamsmith, who died last year at 18 months old, strengthens safety standards for products with button batteries, commonly found in everyday items.
U.S. Sens. Marsha Blackburn, a Tennessee Republican, and Richard Blumenthal, a Democrat from Connecticut, introduced the legislation nicknamed Reese's Law in the Senate earlier this year.
"We are relieved this common-sense legislation has passed Congress and is on its way to President Biden's desk to become law so families can have greater peace of mind about the safety of products in their home," the pair said in a news release following the bill's passage in the Senate on Wednesday.
In 2020, Hamsmith swallowed a small, flat battery, called a button cell or coin battery, which are often found in household items like cameras, calculators, flashing apparel and even greeting cards. "If swallowed, these batteries can pose a serious danger to young children and infants, and can cause serious injuries, severe internal burns, or even death," the news release reads.
About a month later, she died after a long hospital stay.
The legislation will create performance standards that require these batteries to be secured, require warning labels and require that the warning labels clearly identify the hazard of ingestion, among other things.
The legislation will undoubtedly save lives, Reese's mother, Trista Hamsmith, said in a statement. "I often talk about the plaque that was in Reese's hospital room which read, 'He has a plan and I have a purpose.' Reese's life was taken way too soon, but her legacy will live on through this law so that no other family will have to suffer like ours," she said.
Hamsmith announced the introduction of the legislation at the Capitol in September 2021. The bill was introduced in the House by a group of bipartisan representatives, where it passed earlier this year.
Following her daughter's death, Hamsmith founded Reese's Purpose, an organization that advocates to protect children from hidden dangers and threats to their safety. She created a Change.org petition to raise awareness about the issue and the legislation and urged people to call their representatives and ask them to pass the bill.
Button batteries, also known as lithium batteries, can get stuck in the throat when swallowed and saliva triggers an electric current which can cause a chemical reaction. The esophagus can be severely burned in as little as two hours and it could lead to death, according to Children's Hospital of Philadelphia, or CHOP.
If you suspect your child has swallowed a button battery, CHOP says to look for signs like drooling, decreased eating or drinking, difficulty swallowing, hoarse voice, vomiting, chest pain or discomfort, abdominal pain, blood in saliva and stool and sudden crying.
If you think your child has swallowed a battery, they should be taken to the emergency room immediately.
Do not give the child anything to eat or drink, or any medications to make then move their bowels or vomit, CHOP says. Milk will not prevent further injury.
"Do not attempt the Heimlich maneuver, even if you saw your child swallow the battery," they advise. "The battery could get stuck another area or change its location and increase the risk of injury."
To prevent this from happening, parents should know where these batteries are in their home and keep them out of reach from children, and spread the word about the risk, CHOP says.
I think they name them after kids, because it’s harder to vote against a child who is a victim.
They uae to make batteries that had a coating on them was very bitter so infants would spit them out. Do they still make them?
“Modification? Do you mean that we should all return to the 1970s where C and D cell batteries were the norm?
No thanks.”
I said no such thing and I have no idea what you mean.
One of my granddaughters swallowed the same kind of button battery and had to be removed at the hospital. Had to knock her out and use a magnet š§²
Don't have to - they rarely have any
More than likely they require a screw to keep the battery compartment closed
Labeling batteries so the 18 month old won’t eat them? Children that age usually can’t read, and the parents apparently do not, so I’m not sure who they are targeting here. Every responsible parent knows that children put everything in their mouth. It is a parent’s responsibility to teach them not to do that. Batteries are deadly, as are many other small objects. Not sure that labeling them is going to help much.
Our oldest grandson was the worst in immediately putting anything he picked up straight into his mouth. We would smack his hand (just a tiny bit) and say “not in the mouth”. Sometimes, all four adults would say it at the same time. It became a bit of a joke as we would all say in unison “not in the mouth”. He eventually learned and would hesitate and look at us before eating anything.
I was so paranoid when my kids were little, every time I would see them put something in their mouth it was a race to get their in time to see what it was.
And make sure the child can read by 18 months.
“More than likely they require a screw to keep the battery compartment closed”
Or a very tight click-latch.
I need a knife or small screwdriver to pop some open.
And on some others I have to tape them closed!
How about coat the batteries with something safe, but tastes really bad.
Imagine a smart watch that either is big enough to accept a 9V battery or has some sort of cable so you can put the battery in your pocket.
The world might start looking like the movie "Brazil". Very steampunk. Cool!
“I was so paranoid when my kids were little, every time I would see them put something in their mouth it was a race to get their in time to see what it was.”
++++
And eventually you learn to just laugh and sigh in relief when it’s just something as harmless as a dust-bunny. They will spit that out pretty quick. Small Lego pieces are another thing I’ve pried out of mouths many a time. And the eraser end off of pencils. Why do children like to chew on those? Those new teeth are pretty sharp when they are just insistent that they are going to keep that toy in their mouth.
Batteries though, are scary and my children were young at the time when every single toy started having a battery included for either the sound or the movement, and the battery compartments opened easily. Now, most of them require a small screwdriver. I started putting duct tape over the battery compartments to make sure they wouldn’t come open and allow the batteries to fall out.
I always picture like a movie in slow-motion the child moving his hand to their mouth and the parent going, “Nooooooooooooooooooo” as they move towards them.
“How about coat the batteries with something safe, but tastes really bad.”
Already done.
And while itās not clear whether Duracell is using the same bittering agent as Nintendo, if itās anything like the Switch cartridges (which The Vergeās executive editor Dieter Bohn says ātastes like insecticide,ā āIt is literally the worst thing,ā and that the taste āwonāt go away. I donāt want to do this again,ā
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