[January 20, 2014]

CHPA Responds to Sen. Schumer's Call for Mandatory Flow Restrictors on Children's Liquid Medicines

The Consumer Healthcare Products Association issued the following statement in response to Sen. Charles Schumer's (D-N.Y.) call for the U.S. Food and Drug Administration and the Consumer Product Safety Commission to require flow restrictors on all bottles of children's liquid medicines:

"CHPA and its member companies share a goal of ensuring that parents and caregivers have access to the best medicines possible as well as resources to use them safely, appropriately, and in a cost-effective manner.

"We are involved in a number of long-term efforts targeted at preventing accidental, unsupervised ingestion of medicines by young children. The most impactful solution is locking the child-resistant closure and storing all medicines up and away and out of children's reach. This is why we educate parents and caregivers to store medicines up and away and out of sight through a campaign led by CHPA's Educational Foundation and the U.S. Centers for Disease Control's PROTECT Initiative.

"The manufacturers have voluntarily added flow restrictors to infants' and children's liquid acetaminophen products. Flow restrictors are one tool for parents that industry employs to reduce the amount of medicine a child who defeats the child-resistant packaging might ingest. Because medicines are meant to be accessible, flow restrictors aren't sufficient to prevent accidental, unsupervised medicine ingestions, but safe and appropriate storage is.

"While there is currently no regulating authority over flow restrictors, child-resistant packaging is regulated by U.S. Food and Drug Administration and Consumer Product Safety Commission. We continue to study and advance child-resistant packaging technologies."

The Consumer Healthcare Products Association (CHPA) is the 133-year-old trade association representing the leading manufacturers and marketers of over-the-counter (OTC) medicines and dietary supplements. Every dollar spent by consumers on OTC medicines saves the U.S. healthcare system $6-$7, contributing a total of $102 billion in savings each year. CHPA is committed to promoting the increasingly vital role of over-the-counter medicines and dietary supplements in America's healthcare system through science, education, and advocacy.

chpa.org

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