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Newborn deaths prompt federal warning over recalled Bobby baby loungers

2023-06-07 02:45
The US Consumer Product Safety Commission on Tuesday urged parents and caregivers to stop using Boppy Newborn Loungers -- a pillow for infants -- after two more infants died after the agency issued a mass recall of the product in 2021.
Newborn deaths prompt federal warning over recalled Bobby baby loungers

The US Consumer Product Safety Commission on Tuesday urged parents and caregivers to stop using Boppy Newborn Loungers -- a pillow for infants -- after two more infants died after the agency issued a mass recall of the product in 2021.

The recalled products made by The Boppy Company, of Golden, Colorado, include Boppy Original Newborn Loungers, Boppy Preferred Newborn Loungers and Pottery Barn Kids Boppy Newborn Loungers.

More than 3 million Newborn Loungers were recalled in September 2021 after eight infants died as a result of use of the product. The deaths occurred between December 2015 and June 2020.

The CPSC warned at the time that the loungers posed a risk of suffocation if infants rolled, moved, or were placed on the lounger in a position that obstructed breathing, or if infants rolled off the lounger onto an external surface, such as an adult pillow.

Following the recall, another infant suffocated in October 2021 after reportedly being placed on the lounger for sleep and then rolled underneath a nearby adult pillow. Another infant, who was placed on a Newborn Lounger in an adult bed with a parent and soft bedding, was later found deceased on the lounger in November of the same year. The cause of death was undetermined, the agency said.

The CPSC said the Newborn Loungers have not been legal for sale since they were recalled. Since then, however, the agency and Boppy have sent numerous requests to Facebook Marketplace and other online marketplaces to remove the recalled products that continue to appear for sale on their sites.

The agency said It is unlawful for recalled products to be listed for sale on an online marketplace or to sell or donate a recalled product in any other manner. Consumers should stop using the recalled Newborn Loungers can contact The Boppy Company for instructions on how to dispose of the product and get a refund.

The agency recommended that the best place for an infant to sleep is on a firm, flat surface in a crib, bassinet, or play yard. It said parents and caregivers should not put blankets, pillows, padded crib bumpers, or other items near a sleeping infant and that infants should always be placed to sleep on their backs.