The US Consumer Product Safety Commission warns of infant deaths on Fisher Price bouncers from newborn to toddler and from infant to toddler

The deaths occurred as the babies fell asleep in Fisher Price’s baby-to-toddler and newborn-to-toddler swings. The company, along with the US Consumer Product Safety Commission, said the bouncers should never be used for sleeping, and young children should never be left unattended or unhindered in them.

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Fisher-Price, a division of Mattel Inc. based in El Segundo, Calif., recalled a similar product last year after four infants died after being placed untied on their backs in the Rock ‘n Glide 4-in-1 pacifier had been. These deaths, all children under the age of 4 months, occurred between April 2019 and February 2020.

In 2019, the CPSC recalled another similar Fisher-Price product, the Rock ‘n Play Sleeper, after 30 infant deaths were reported. Doctors, parents and consumer advocates had warned the company for years that the product was unsafe and should be recalled.

CPSC Commissioner Richard Trumka Jr. said a 1981 gag order issued by Congress prevented the agency from issuing an immediate warning to consumers without first obtaining permission from the product’s manufacturer. In the most recent case, according to Trumka, the gag order delayed the warning by two months.

“Congress must immediately repeal the gag rule,” Trumka said in a press release separate from Tuesday’s product alert. “If CPSC cannot warn in time, dangers remain hidden in people’s homes.”

A new rule passed by the CPSC requires baby sleep products to have a sleeping surface angle of 10 degrees or less. The regulation will come into effect on June 23, 2022.

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Fisher-Price and the CPSC said the best place for infants to sleep is on their backs on a firm, flat surface with no blankets or other objects nearby.

Fisher-Price has sold more than 17 million rockers worldwide since the 1990s.

Consumers are encouraged to report incidents involving these or other infant products to the CPSC at saferproducts (dot) gov.