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[Federal Register Volume 78, Number 107 (Tuesday, June 4, 2013)]
[Notices]
[Pages 33393-33394]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2013-13000]

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CONSUMER PRODUCT SAFETY COMMISSION

[Docket No. CPSC-2013-0022]

Petition Requesting a Ban or Standard on Adult Portable Bed Rails

AGENCY: Consumer Product Safety Commission.

ACTION: Notice.

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SUMMARY: The Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC or Commission) 
has received two requests, asking that the Commission initiate 
proceedings under section 8 of the Consumer Product Safety Act (CPSA) 
to determine that adult portable bed rails pose an unreasonable risk of 
injury and initiate related rulemaking under section 9 of the CPSA. 
Because both requests ask for rulemaking concerning the same product, 
CPSC is considering the requests as a single petition (CP13-1). The 
Commission invites written comments concerning the petition.

DATES: The Office of the Secretary must receive comments on the 
petition by August 5, 2013.

ADDRESSES: You may submit comments, identified by Docket No. CPSC-2013-
0022, by any of the following methods:
    Electronic Submissions: Submit electronic comments to the Federal 
eRulemaking Portal at: http://www.regulations.gov. Follow the 
instructions for submitting comments. The Commission does not accept 
comments submitted by electronic mail (email), except through 
www.regulations.gov. The Commission encourages you to submit electronic 
comments by using the Federal eRulemaking Portal, as described above.
    Written Submissions: Submit written submissions in the following 
way: Mail/Hand delivery/Courier (for paper, disk, or CD-ROM 
submissions), preferably in five copies, to: Office of the Secretary, 
Consumer Product Safety Commission, Room 820, 4330 East West Highway, 
Bethesda, MD 20814; telephone (301) 504-7923.
    Instructions: All submissions received must include the agency name 
and docket number for this notice. All comments received may be posted 
without change, including any personal identifiers, contact 
information, or other personal information provided, to: http://www.regulations.gov. Do not submit confidential business information, 
trade secret information, or other sensitive or protected information 
that you do not want to be available to the public. If furnished at 
all, such information should be submitted in writing.
    Docket: For access to the docket to read background documents or 
comments received, go to: http://www.regulations.gov, and insert the 
docket number, CPSC-2013-0022, into the ``Search'' box, and follow the 
prompts. A copy of the petition is available at http://www.regulations.gov under Docket No. CPSC-2013-0022, Supporting and 
Related Materials.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Rockelle Hammond, Office of the 
Secretary, U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission, Room 820, 4330 East 
West Highway, Bethesda, MD 20814; telephone (301) 504-6833.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The Commission received two requests to 
initiate proceedings under section 8 of the Consumer Product Safety Act 
(CPSA) to determine that adult portable bed rails pose an unreasonable 
risk of injury and initiate related rulemaking under section 9 of the 
CPSA. See 15 U.S.C. 2057 and 2058. Gloria Black, the Consumer 
Federation of America, and 60 other organizations (Consumer Group) made 
one request; Public Citizen made the other request (collectively 
referred to as petitioners). The CPSC has docketed the requests as a 
single petition.
    Petitioners assert that adult portable bed rails currently on the 
market are responsible for many injuries and deaths among users, 
particularly the elderly and frail. Petitioners state that many of 
these deaths result from asphyxiation caused by entrapment within 
openings of the rail or between the rail and the mattress or bed frame. 
In addition, petitioners claim that individuals who attempt to climb 
over bed rails may be at greater risk of injury or death than they 
would be if no rail were used at all. In support of their request, 
petitioners cite a CPSC memorandum dated October 11, 2012, ``Adult 
Portable Bed Rail-Related Deaths, Injuries, and Potential Injuries: 
January 2003 to September 2012.'' According to petitioners, the CPSC's 
data showed that there were 155 fatalities, of which 129 involved 
victims ages 60 years and over; most of the fatalities related to rail 
entrapment. In addition, petitioners state that the CPSC found an 
estimated 36,900 adult portable bed rail-related injuries that were 
treated in U.S. hospital emergency departments from January 2003 to 
December 2011.
    Petitioners request that the CPSC initiate proceedings under 
section 8 of the CPSA that would ban all adult portable bed rails 
because, they assert, the product presents an unreasonable risk of 
injury and no feasible consumer product safety standard would 
adequately protect the public from these products. Public Citizen 
contends that no mandatory standard or warnings could be developed that 
would adequately protect against the hazards presented by adult 
portable bed rails. The Consumer Group, however, states that if the 
CPSC does not pursue a ban, the Commission should initiate a rulemaking 
to promulgate mandatory standards under section 9 of the CPSA, to 
reduce the unreasonable risk of asphyxiation and the entrapment hazards 
posed by adult portable bed rails, and to include warning labels in the 
standards. The Consumer Group also requests action under section 27(e) 
of the CPSA to require manufacturers of adult portable bed rails to 
provide performance and technical data regarding the safety of their 
products.
    In addition, petitioners request a public recall notice and refund 
for all adult portable bed rails under section 15 of the CPSA. However, 
the Commission may docket as petitions only requests for action that 
the Commission is authorized to take through the issuance, amendment, 
or revocation of rules. 16 CFR 1051.2(a). Accordingly, the recall and 
refund requested by petitioners are outside the scope of a rulemaking 
proceeding and will be forwarded to the CPSC Office of Compliance and 
Field Operations for review.

[[Page 33394]]

    By this notice, the Commission seeks comments concerning this 
petition. Interested parties may obtain a copy of the petition by 
writing or calling the Office of the Secretary, U.S. Consumer Product 
Safety Commission, Room 820, 4330 East West Highway, Bethesda, MD 
20814; telephone (301) 504-7923. A copy of the petition also will be 
made available for viewing under ``Supporting and Related Materials'' 
in www.regulations.gov under this docket number. www.regulations.gov.

    Dated: May 29, 2013
Todd A. Stevenson,
Secretary, U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission.
[FR Doc. 2013-13000 Filed 6-3-13; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6355-01-P
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