If you have a Fisher-Price Rock 'n Play, stop using it and contact Fisher-Price for a refund. That's according to a recall from the company, posted to the United States Product Safety Commission's.
Fisher-Price announced Friday that it is recalling 4.7 million Rock 'n Play sleepers.
The recall involves all models, according to the recall notice posted on the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission website.
'Since the 2009 product introduction, over 30 infant fatalities have occurred in Rock ‘n Play Sleepers, after the infants rolled over while unrestrained, or under other circumstances,' the recall notice said.
According to the recall, consumers 'should immediately stop using the product and contact Fisher-Price for a refund or voucher.'
The recall comes a week after Fisher-Price and the government agency issued a warning advising consumer to stop using the product by three months 'or as soon as an infant exhibits rollover capabilities.' That warning mentioned 10 infant deaths.
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This week, Consumer Reports and the American Academy of Pediatrics urged the product be pulled from store shelves and recalled.
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The consumer magazine said Monday its ongoing investigation found that at least 32 babies have died and their work 'has turned up deaths of babies even younger than the 3-month threshold cited in the April 5 warning, and go beyond the risk of rollover.'
Marta Tellado, president and CEO of Consumer Reports, said the recall was long overdue.
“Fisher-Price and the CPSC knew about deaths linked to this product for years and could have taken steps to avoid this unnecessary tragedy,' Tellado said in a statement. 'It took dogged investigation and the voices of doctors, victims’ families, and advocates across the country to make this recall a reality. Congress needs to take a hard look at the CPSC and make sure it is a watchdog that consumers can rely on.”
On Thursday, Consumer Reports reported its investigation linked four more deaths to two infant inclined sleepers made by the company Kids II. The products, which the magazine also says should be recalled, are the Ingenuity Moonlight Rocking Sleeper and the Bright Starts Playtime to Bedtime Sleeper.
'These inclined products are linked to infant deaths and conflict with medical experts’ safe sleep recommendations,' said William Wallace, senior policy analyst for the magazine in a statement.
U.S. Senator Richard Blumenthal, D-Conn. tweeted Friday he was glad the agency 'heeded our call on the Rock ‘n Play, but the recall doesn’t include the Kids II sleepers & puts lots of burdens, including a complicated disassembly, on already sleep-deprived parents or caregivers.'
He also urged Ann Marie Buerkle, acting chairman of the safety commission, to work with 'Fisher-Price to streamline recall requirements & insist on a full refund for all affected, to ensure these deadly products are removed from homes,' Blumenthal wrote in a second tweet, adding the he called on the commission 'to investigate whether infant inclined sleepers are fundamentally unsafe.'
Wallace agreed that Fisher-Price and Mattel 'owe it to their customers to give them full refunds, rather than partial refunds or company vouchers. And that should be the case regardless of how long ago the product was bought.'
A second recall notice on Fisher-Price's parent company Mattel's website gives directions on two parts that should be sent from the sleeper to Fisher-Price for the refund process.
'If you have owned the Fisher-Price Rock 'N Play Sleeper 6 months or less, you will receive a full cash refund for the suggested retail price,' the notice states. 'If you include your receipt you will be reimbursed for the receipt amount including sales taxes paid.'
Consumers who have owned the product longer 'will receive a voucher to redeem for a new Fisher-Price product commensurate with the amount of time you have owned the Fisher-Price Rock 'N Play Sleeper.'
For more information, contact Fisher-Price online at www.service.mattel.com and click on “Recalls & Safety Alerts” or call 866-812-6518 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. ET Monday through Friday.
Consumers can learn about reporting potentially dangerous products at www.consumersafety.org and www.saferproducts.gov.
Follow USA TODAY reporter Kelly Tyko on Twitter: @KellyTyko
Consumer Reports had found that at least 32 babies died in the sleeper
Update: On May 15, Health Canada announced two separate recalls for Fisher-Price Rock ‘n Play Sleepers sold in Canada, citing safety risks. The first involved approximately 2,000 products sold from December 2009 to February 2011 with model number R6070. The second involved about 600 sleepers, of various models, that were sold on Amazon.ca (Amazon’s Canadian website) between January 2018 and April 2019. Health Canada said caregivers should immediately stop using the products for naptime or overnight sleep. The recall does not apply to Fisher-Price Rock ‘n Play Soothing Seats, which are nearly identical products but not marketed for sleep.
Update: On April 26, Kids II recalled 694,000 of its Rocking Sleepers citing infant deaths, and said parents should immediately stop using the products.
This article was originally published on April 12.
Fisher-Price on Friday recalled all 4.7 million of its Rock ’n Play Sleepers, citing more than 30 infant deaths, and told parents to immediately stop using the products. The recall, which applies to all models of the product, was conducted voluntarily by the company under the Consumer Product Safety Commission's Fast Track recall process.
The announcement follows a Consumer Reports investigation into the safety of the Fisher-Price Rock ’n Play Sleeper that found the product was tied to at least 32 infant deaths since 2009.
Earlier this week, the American Academy of Pediatrics urged Fisher-Price to recall the Rock ’n Play Sleeper, citing CR’s reporting.
The CPSC recall says the deaths “occurred in Rock ’n Play Sleepers, after the infants rolled over while unrestrained, or under other circumstances.”
The AAP has warned that inclined sleepers such as these do not align with safe sleep guidelines, which state that babies should be put to bed alone on their backs, on a firm, flat mattress, free from soft bedding. The Rock ’n Play Sleeper and others like it increase the risk of suffocation and strangulation.
“This product is dangerous and I urge parents and caregivers to stop using it right away,” said Ben Hoffman, M.D., chairperson of AAP’s Council on Injury, Violence, and Poison Prevention Executive Committee. “While this recall is specific to the Rock ’n Play, there are other inclined and padded sleeping products on the market that can put infants’ safety at risk. I am glad to see this product off the market and urge all parents to talk to their pediatricians about how to keep their babies safe during sleep time and any time.”
Marta Tellado, president and CEO of Consumer Reports, said, “The Fisher-Price recall of the Rock ’n Play is long overdue. It took dogged investigation and the voices of doctors, victims’ families, and advocates across the country to make this recall a reality. Congress needs to take a hard look at the CPSC and make sure it is a watchdog that consumers can rely on.”
Consumers who have a Rock ’n Play Sleeper can contact Fisher-Price for a refund or voucher. To reach the company, go to service.mattel.com and click on Recalls & Safety Alerts or call 866-812-6518 from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. ET Monday through Friday for more information.
Fisher-Price’s refund option, however, only applies to consumers who have owned a Rock ’n Play Sleeper for less than six months, the CPSC recall said. Families who have owned it for longer than that will be offered a voucher to redeem for a new Fisher-Price product, depending on how long they owned the Rock ’n Play Sleeper.
That worries some consumer advocates. “By not fully compensating consumers, Fisher-Price is assuring that many consumers will instead choose to keep the product,” said Nancy Cowles, executive director of Kids in Danger, a nonprofit that focuses on reducing childhood injuries from consumer products. “Anyone with a Rock ’n Play Sleeper should be given a full refund.”
In addition, Cowles said that while she is pleased the product has been recalled, “it took children dying to get this product off the market. We need to step up efforts to assure safety in products before they go on store shelves or into our homes.”
CR recommends that parents and caregivers with other inclined sleepers should also immediately stop using those products. That is especially true for Kids II inclined sleepers, which CR has reported to be linked with four infant deaths.
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