FISHER-Price is recalling two of its baby soother products after they were linked to the deaths of four infants, the US Consumer Product Safety Commission announced.
All of the infants who died were placed on their backs in the unrestrained devices and later found on their stomachs, the commission said.
The products being recalled are Fisher-Price's 4-in-1 Rock ‘n Glide Soothers and 2-in-1 Soothe ‘n Play Gliders.
All of the fatalities occurred between April 2019 and February 2020 in the Rock 'n Glide Soother.
They tragically included a four-month-old from Missouri, a two-month-old from Nevada, a two-month-old from Michigan, and an 11-week old from Colorado.
There have been no fatalities in the 2-in-1 Soothe ‘n Play Gliders, the commission said, but it is similar to the 4-in-1 Rock n' Glide. Both products can rock a baby in a head-to-toe or side-to-side motion.
Robert Adler, the acting chairman of the commission, said the products were not safe for infants to sleep in because of the risk of suffocation.
“These types of incidents are heartbreaking,” Mr. Adler said. “Loving parents put their babies in these products never expecting a tragedy.”
In a statement, Chuck Scothon, general manager of Fisher-Price, said he shared Adler's heartbreak over the four deaths.
“There is nothing more important to Fisher-Price than the safety of our products and the trust that families put in us,” said Scothon. “These incidents are indeed heart-breaking.
"We are committed to educating parents and caregivers on the safe use of all of our products, including the importance of following all warnings and instructions to ensure the health and safety of babies and children.”
The 4-in-1 Rock ‘n Glide Soother retailed for around $108, and the 2-in-1 Soothe 'n Play Glider was sold for around $125.
Around 120,000 4-in-1 soothers and 55,000 2-in-1 gliders were sold in the US in recent years, the commission reported.
Fisher-Price stopped selling the soother in December and halted sales of the glider in May.
In 2019, the New York-based producer of toys and products for children recalled about 4.7 million of its Rock 'n Play baby sleepers after more than 30 infant deaths were linked to the product over the previous decade.
New findings from the House Committee on Oversight and Reform say that Fisher-Price failed to ensure the product was safe and ignored "critical warning signs" that it was dangerous.
According to CBS, the report cites an incident from October 2012, when a mother reported to Fisher-Price that her 2-month-old son "had stopped breathing" in the sleeper.
He was revived, but two months later, "Fisher-Price was notified that a 15-week-old infant died in the Rock 'n Play."
In most cases, the commission said, the children suffocated after rolling over in the sleeper from their back to their stomach or side while unrestrained.
House Oversight and Reform Chair Carolyn Maloney called the discovery "outrageous, and in my opinion, it's criminal."
"We have to take steps to make sure that this does not happen again," she told the network.
Fisher-Price says it disagrees with "significant parts" of the report's findings.
"The Rock 'n Play Sleeper was designed and developed following extensive research, medical advice, safety analysis, and more than a year of testing and review. It met or exceeded all applicable regulatory standards," the company said.
Nancy Cowles, executive director of Kids in Danger, a nonprofit that advocates for the safety of products for children. told NPR the latest recall is a "long-standing concern of ours with products like this that kind of blur the line between asleep and awake."
"We just wish that these products were made in such a way that they either were not used for sleep because the design discouraged it or were safe for sleep," Cowles said. "
"And not this in-between one where if you leave a baby sleeping in it they could get themselves in an unsafe position and suffocate."
Consumers can contact Fisher-Price directly for a refund online or by calling toll-free at 855-853-6224.
According to the CPSC, the safest way for babies to sleep is on their backs in a crib, bassinet, or a play yard without the addition of any pillows or blankets.
Last week, the commission announced it had approved new safety standards for products that are designed or marketed specifically for infant sleep.
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