Feds move to curb child deaths involving curtains

The Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) is looking to protect young children from being strangled to death by the cords attached to window coverings like curtains, shades and blinds.

Household curtains may place children at risk, according to the CPSC, which is developing mandatory safety standards for window coverings.

The CPSC reports that 184 children were strangled to death and more than 100 others were injured by window curtains between 1996 and 2012. 

This amounts to about 11 fatal strangulations each year among young children, the agency noted.

“The (CPSC) believes that certain window covering cords may present an unreasonable risk of injury, specifically strangulation, to young children,” the agency wrote in the Federal Register.

This comes after safety advocates petitioned the CPSC for stronger standards.

The CPSC has since found that its current standards are not effective enough to address more than half of the window covering strangulations.

In October, the CPSC began considering mandatory safety standards for window coverings.

The CPSC is now seeking public comment on its advanced notice of rule-making. 

The public has 60 days to respond.