CPSC Approves New Safety Rules for Infant Cushions and Pillows

Federal safety regulators have approved a series of new mandatory standards for infant cushions and pillow products, which are intended to address the rising number of preventable injuries and deaths associated with their use in recent years.

The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) announced the new Federal Safety Standard for Infant Support Cushions on October 16, following a 5-0 vote to approve new rules that will address product design flaws that can increase the risk of suffocation, entrapment and fall risks.

Infant support cushions are designed to provide comfort and support for babies in various positions, whether lying down, sitting up or resting. These products include a range of items, such as:

• Infant loungers
• Infant head positioner pillows
• Infant wedge pillows
• Infant sleep positioners and anti-rollover pillows
• Crib pillows
• Stuffed toys, pads or mats marketed for use as infant support cushions
• Multi-purpose pillows for nursing and lounging
• Tummy time pillows

While infant cushion and pillow products have become widely popular among parents across the U.S., the CPSC has become aware of at least 79 infant deaths and 124 injuries associated with infant support cushions, which occurred between 2010 and 2022.

Most incidents have involved children younger than three months old, with the majority of these deaths involving the cushions being used on beds, mattresses, bassinets, cribs, play yards, couches or futons.

The new rule goes into effect 180 days after its publication in the Federal Register and mandates the following infant support cushion standards:

• Firmness testing on all parts of the products’ surfaces to reduce suffocation from the cushions conforming to an infant’s face and obstructing airways.
• Sidewall angle testing that would require the angle formed between any sidewall and the cushion’s surface to be greater than 90 degrees to reduce the risk of entrapment and suffocation.
• The maximum incline angle of the products cannot exceed 10 degrees to minimize hazardous positioning of an infant’s head and neck. This ruling also limits the side height and provides consumers with a visual cue to place the product on the floor, reducing the risk of falls.
• Prohibition on the use of infant restraints, as they can give the misleading impression that an infant can be safely left unattended in the product.
• Products must feature conspicuous, permanent warning labels with strong wording.

CPSC warns that infants can fall out of support cushions without warning, and urges parents or caregivers to always watch their children during use, and never use infant support cushions for sleeping. Infant support cushions should only be used on the floor and away from blankets or soft items.

Federal safety officials remind parents and guardians that the safest place for a baby to sleep is on a flat, bare surface, such as a crib, bassinet or play yard.

Inclined Infant Sleep Products Linked to Suffocation Risks

Suffocation risks have been linked to a number of popular infant products in recent years, with many of the fatalities occurring in products with inclined designs, such as rockers, gliders, soothers and swings.

In early April 2019, the CPSC first raised concerns over the inclining design of Fisher-Price Rock ‘n Play infant sleepers, warning consumers to stop placing infants in the sleepers before they begin to show signs that they can roll over independently. Officials warned that infants may have the ability to roll over on their stomach and become trapped against the inclined bed, creating a suffocation risk.

Shortly after the initial CPSC warning, the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) issued a statement, calling for the commission to issue an immediate recall for the Rock ‘n Play Sleepers. The AAP determined the inclined sleepers were unsafe, and that the CPSC warning did not go far enough to ensure the safety of infants.

Just 12 days after the warning, the agency issued a Fisher-Price Rock ‘n Play Sleeper recall, impacting approximately 4.7 million units. The recall included all models of Rock ‘n Play sleepers that were distributed for sale throughout the United States to major retailers for between $40 and $149 since 2009.

Since the recalls, Fisher-Price has been hit with a number of inclined sleeper individual wrongful death lawsuits and at least 10 class action lawsuits alleging the manufacturer knew or should have known about the risk of problems, yet delayed announcing a recall or warning, and knowingly allowed parents to continue purchasing life-threatening sleeper devices.

Another Fisher-Price recall was announced earlier this month, impacting roughly 2.1 million Snuga Swings, following at least five reports of infant suffocation deaths when the product was used for sleep, or additional bedding material was added to the swings.

The CPSC issued a series of warnings in August 2024 for these kinds of products, due to faulty designs that caused multiple infant deaths. Design flaws for the products included low sides that failed to contain infants, overly thick sleeping pads that posed suffocation risks, entrapment risks between the seat and bars of a stroller or in enclosed openings, and restraint systems that excessively restricted infant movement.

The new federal safety standards approved by the CPSC this week address many of the hazards associated with these products and could prevent future infant injuries and deaths.