The Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) testified in Washington last week that it plans to work toward the speedy development of new safety standards for football helmets, especially for children, The New York Times reported Friday.
CPSC chairwoman Inez Tenenbaum made her remarks before a Senate Commerce subcommittee Thursday, which was conducting a hearing that was mainly focused on the safety of cribs and toys.
Tenenbaum testified that the CPSC was in talks now with the National Operating Committee on Standards for Athletic Equipment, which regulates helmets, The Times said. That body’s safety standards have been in place for decades, and were aimed at protectng against skull fractures, not injuries such as concussions.
The CPSC will work with the standards operating committee in January “to monitor and accelerate their efforts to update the appropriate standard,” Tenenbaum said.
The CPSC has a lawmaker breathing down its neck, namely Sen. Tom Udall, D-N.M. He asked the CPSC to get involved in the creation of new helmet standards. Right now, the same guidelins apply to helmets for young boys and NFL players.
Udall has also been back and forth with the NFL’s head, neck and spine committee, which is thinking about creating a separate helmet standard for professional football players, according to The Times.
