I 

111TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION H. R. 4642 

To enhance Federal efforts focused on public awareness and education about 

the risks and dangers associated with Shaken Baby Syndrome. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

FEBRUARY 22, 2010 

Mrs. LOWEY introduced the following bill; which was referred to the 

Committee on Energy and Commerce 

A BILL 

To enhance Federal efforts focused on public awareness and 

education about the risks and dangers associated with 

Shaken Baby Syndrome. 

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

4 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Shaken Baby Syn5 drome Prevention Act of 2010’’. 

6 SEC. 2. FINDINGS. 

7 Congress finds the following: 

8 (1) Shaken Baby Syndrome is a term used to 

9 describe the constellation of symptoms, trauma, and 

10 medical conditions resulting from the violent shakVerDate Nov 24 2008 07:08 Feb 23, 2010 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H4642.IH H4642

rfrederick on DSKD9S0YB1PROD with BILLS
2 

•HR 4642 IH

1 ing, or abusive impact to the head, of an infant, tod2 dler, or other young child. 

3 (2) Shaken Baby Syndrome is a form of child 

4 abuse affecting between 1,200 and 1,600 children 

5 every year. 

6 (3) Children who are age 1 or younger ac7 counted for over 40 percent of all child abuse and 

8 neglect fatalities in 2007, and children who are age 

9 4 or younger accounted for nearly 77 percent of all 

10 child abuse and neglect fatalities in 2007. 

11 (4) The most recent National Child Abuse and 

12 Neglect Data System figures reveal that almost 

13 794,000 children were victims of abuse and neglect 

14 in the United States in 2007. That abuse and ne15 glect caused unspeakable pain and suffering to the 

16 Nation’s most vulnerable citizens. 

17 (5) It is estimated that between one-quarter 

18 and one-third of Shaken Baby Syndrome victims die 

19 as a result of their injuries, while one-third suffer 

20 permanent, severe disabilities including paralysis, 

21 seizures, loss of hearing or vision, cognitive impair22 ments, and other disabilities, often resulting in a 

23 lifetime of extraordinary medical, educational, and 

24 care expenses. 


rfrederick on DSKD9S0YB1PROD with BILLS
3 

•HR 4642 IH

1 (6) Shaken Baby Syndrome is preventable. Pre2 vention programs have demonstrated that educating 

3 new parents and other caregivers about the danger 

4 of shaking young children, healthy strategies for 

5 coping with infant crying, infant soothing skills, and 

6 how to protect children from injury can bring about 

7 a significant reduction in the number of cases of 

8 Shaken Baby Syndrome. 

9 (7) Efforts to prevent Shaken Baby Syndrome 

10 are supported by child welfare and advocacy groups 

11 across the United States, including many groups 

12 formed by parents and relatives of children who have 

13 been killed or injured by the syndrome. 

14 (8) Education programs have been shown to 

15 raise awareness about Shaken Baby Syndrome and 

16 provide critically important information about the 

17 syndrome to parents, caregivers, child care pro18 viders, child protection employees, law enforcement 

19 personnel, health care professionals, and legal rep20 resentatives. 

21 (9) Education programs can give parents 

22 healthy strategies for dealing with a crying infant 

23 and change the knowledge and behavior of parents 

24 of young children. 


rfrederick on DSKD9S0YB1PROD with BILLS
4 

•HR 4642 IH

1 SEC. 3. PUBLIC HEALTH CAMPAIGN. 

2 (a) IN GENERAL.— 

3 (1) DEVELOPMENT.—The Secretary of Health 

4 and Human Services (referred to in this Act as the 

5 ‘‘Secretary’’), acting through the Director of the Na6 tional Center for Injury Prevention and Control of 

7 the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the 

8 Director of the National Institute of Child Health 

9 and Human Development, the Director of the Ma10 ternal and Child Health Bureau of the Health Re11 sources and Services Administration, and the Direc12 tor of the Office of Child Abuse and Neglect in the 

13 Administration for Children and Families, shall de14 velop an effective national Shaken Baby Syndrome 

15 public health campaign. 

16 (2) INFORMATION.—The public health cam17 paign shall inform the general public, and new par18 ents, child care providers and other caregivers of 

19 young children, health care providers, and social 

20 workers, among others, about brain injuries and 

21 other harmful effects that may result from shaking, 

22 or abusive impact to the head, of infants and chil23 dren under age 5, and healthy strategies to cope 

24 with a crying infant and related frustrations, in 

25 order to help protect children from injury. 


rfrederick on DSKD9S0YB1PROD with BILLS
5 

•HR 4642 IH

1 (3) COORDINATION.—In carrying out the public 

2 health campaign, the Secretary shall also coordinate 

3 activities with providers of other support services to 

4 parents and other caregivers of young children. 

5 (b) ACTIVITIES.— 

6 (1) IN GENERAL.—In carrying out the public 

7 health campaign, the Secretary shall carry out the 

8 activities described in paragraphs (2) through (4). 

9 (2) NATIONAL ACTION PLAN AND STRATE10 GIES.—The Secretary shall— 

11 (A) develop a National Action Plan and ef12 fective strategies to increase awareness of op13 portunities to prevent Shaken Baby Syndrome 

14 through activities that comprehensively and sys15 tematically provide information and instruction 

16 about healthy strategies for parents and other 

17 caregivers concerning how to cope with a crying 

18 infant and related frustrations; and 

19 (B) coordinate the Plan and effective strat20 egies with evidence-based strategies and efforts 

21 that support families with infants and other 

22 young children, such as home visiting programs 

23 and respite child care efforts, which have a role 

24 to play in prevention of the syndrome. 


rfrederick on DSKD9S0YB1PROD with BILLS
6 

•HR 4642 IH

1 (3) COMMUNICATION, EDUCATION, AND TRAIN2 ING.—The Secretary shall carry out communication, 

3 education, and training about Shaken Baby Syn4 drome prevention, including efforts to communicate 

5 with the general public by— 

6 (A) disseminating effective prevention 

7 practices and techniques to parents and care8 givers through maternity hospitals, child care 

9 centers, organizations providing prenatal and 

10 postnatal care, organizations providing pro11 grams for fathers, and organizations providing 

12 parenting education and support services; 

13 (B)(i) producing evidence-based edu14 cational and informational materials in print, 

15 audio, video, electronic, and other media, giving 

16 special attention to educating young men and 

17 English language learners through the mate18 rials; and 

19 (ii) coordinating activities carried out 

20 under clause (i) with national and Federal 

21 awareness activities, such as the activities ac22 companying Shaken Baby Awareness Week, to 

23 the extent possible; and 

24 (C) carrying out Shaken Baby Syndrome 

25 training, which shall aim— 


rfrederick on DSKD9S0YB1PROD with BILLS
7 

•HR 4642 IH

1 (i) to ensure that primary care pro2 viders, home visitors, parent educators, 

3 child care providers, foster parents and 

4 others involved in the care of young chil5 dren, and nurses, physicians, and other 

6 health care providers, are aware of ways to 

7 prevent abusive head trauma and other 

8 forms of child maltreatment, and the need 

9 to secure immediate medical attention in 

10 cases of abusive head trauma; and 

11 (ii) to provide health care providers 

12 and early childhood educators with the 

13 knowledge, skills, and materials to simply, 

14 quickly, and effectively educate parents, in15 cluding adoptive and foster parents, as well 

16 as others who are caregivers of young chil17 dren, about infant crying and thus reduce 

18 abuse. 

19 (4) SUPPORTS FOR PARENTS AND CARE20 GIVERS.— 

21 (A) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary, in con22 sultation with the Shaken Baby Awareness Ad23 visory Council, shall work to ensure that the 

24 parents and caregivers of children are con25 nected to effective supports through the coordiVerDate Nov 24 2008 07:08 Feb 23, 2010 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00007 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H4642.IH H4642

rfrederick on DSKD9S0YB1PROD with BILLS
8 

•HR 4642 IH

1 nation of existing programs and networks or 

2 the establishment of new programs. 

3 (B) SUPPORTS.—To the extent practicable, 

4 the supports provided under this paragraph 

5 shall include the provision of a 24-hour phone 

6 hotline, and the development of an Internet 

7 website for round-the-clock support, for— 

8 (i) parents and caregivers who strug9 gle with infant crying and related con10 cerns; 

11 (ii) parents and caregivers of sur12 viving children who suffer serious injuries 

13 as a result of shaking or an abusive impact 

14 to the head, as a young child; and 

15 (iii) parents and family members of 

16 children who do not survive such shaking 

17 or abusive impact. 

18 (c) SHAKEN BABY AWARENESS ADVISORY COUN19 CIL.— 

20 (1) ESTABLISHMENT.—There is established a 

21 Shaken Baby Awareness Advisory Council (referred 

22 to in this subsection as the ‘‘Council’’). 

23 (2) MEMBERSHIP.—The Council shall be com24 posed of members appointed by the Secretary, not 

25 later than 6 months after the date of enactment of 


rfrederick on DSKD9S0YB1PROD with BILLS
9 

•HR 4642 IH

1 this Act, including, to the maximum extent possible, 

2 representatives from— 

3 (A) Shaken Baby Awareness advocacy or4 ganizations, including groups formed by parents 

5 and relatives of victims; 

6 (B) child protection advocacy organiza7 tions; 

8 (C) organizations involved in child protec9 tion and child maltreatment prevention; 

10 (D) disability advocacy organizations; 

11 (E) pediatric medical associations; 

12 (F) psychologists, child development pro13 fessionals, or family studies professionals; 

14 (G) professional associations or institutions 

15 involved in medical research related to abusive 

16 head trauma; 

17 (H) academic institutions; 

18 (I) parenting support organizations, in19 cluding those providing programs targeted to20 wards fathers; 

21 (J) organizations who come in contact with 

22 families and caregivers of infants, toddlers, and 

23 other young children; and 

24 (K) other Federal and State agencies in25 volved in child abuse prevention activities. 


rfrederick on DSKD9S0YB1PROD with BILLS
10 

•HR 4642 IH

1 (3) PERIOD OF APPOINTMENT; VACANCIES.— 

2 (A) PERIOD OF APPOINTMENT.—The Sec3 retary shall, after consultation with the mem4 bers of the Council initially appointed by the 

5 Secretary under paragraph (2), determine and 

6 establish the term of service on the Council that 

7 shall apply to all current and future members. 

8 (B) VACANCIES.—Any vacancy in the 

9 Council shall not affect the powers of the Coun10 cil, but shall be filled in the same manner as 

11 the original appointment. 

12 (4) DUTIES.—The Council shall meet at least 

13 semi-annually— 

14 (A) to develop recommendations regarding 

15 the National Action Plan and effective strate16 gies described in subsection (b)(2); and 

17 (B) to develop recommendations related to 

18 support services for families and caregivers of 

19 young children. 

20 (5) PERSONNEL.— 

21 (A) TRAVEL EXPENSES.—The members of 

22 the Council shall not receive compensation for 

23 the performance of services for the Council, but 

24 shall be allowed travel expenses, including per 

25 diem in lieu of subsistence, at rates authorized 


rfrederick on DSKD9S0YB1PROD with BILLS
11 

•HR 4642 IH

1 for employees of agencies under subchapter I of 

2 chapter 57 of title 5, United States Code, while 

3 away from their homes or regular places of 

4 business in the performance of services for the 

5 Council. Notwithstanding section 1342 of title 

6 31, United States Code, the Secretary may ac7 cept the voluntary and uncompensated services 

8 of members of the Council. 

9 (B) DETAIL OF GOVERNMENT EMPLOY10 EES.—Any Federal Government employee may 

11 be detailed to the Council without reimburse12 ment, and such detail shall be without interrup13 tion or loss of civil service status or privilege. 

14 (6) TERMINATION OF COMMITTEE.—Section 14 

15 of the Federal Advisory Committee Act (5 U.S.C. 

16 App.) shall not apply to the Council. The Secretary 

17 shall terminate the Council when the Secretary de18 termines, after consultation with the Council, that it 

19 is no longer necessary to pursue the goals and carry 

20 out the activities of the Council. 

21 SEC. 4. STUDY ON DATA COLLECTION. 

22 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Director of the Centers for 

23 Disease Control and Prevention shall conduct a study 

24 that— 


rfrederick on DSKD9S0YB1PROD with BILLS
12 

•HR 4642 IH

1 (1) identifies current data collected on Shaken 

2 Baby Syndrome; 

3 (2) determines the feasibility of collecting uni4 form, accurate data from all States regarding— 

5 (A) incidence rates of Shaken Baby Syn6 drome; 

7 (B) characteristics of perpetrators of Shak8 en Baby Syndrome, including age, gender, rela9 tion to victim, access to prevention materials 

10 and resources, and history of substance abuse, 

11 domestic violence, and mental illness; and 

12 (C) characteristics of victims of Shaken 

13 Baby Syndrome, including gender, date of 

14 birth, date of injury, date of death (if applica15 ble), and short- and long-term injuries sus16 tained; and 

17 (3) identifies what would be needed in order to 

18 establish a national collection of data on Shaken 

19 Baby Syndrome, including examining the possibility 

20 of integrating the data collection into an appro21 priate, existing (as of the date of the identification) 

22 national data collection system, and determining 

23 what would be needed to accomplish that integra24 tion. 


rfrederick on DSKD9S0YB1PROD with BILLS
13 

•HR 4642 IH

1 (b) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There is 

2 authorized to be appropriated to carry out this section 

3 $500,000. 

4 SEC. 5. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS. 

5 There are authorized to be appropriated to carry out 

6 this Act, except section 4, $10,000,000 for fiscal year 

7 2011 and such sums as may be necessary for each of fiscal 

8 years 2012, 2013, and 2014. 

Æ 


rfrederick on DSKD9S0YB1PROD with BILLS