(WJET/WFXP) -- A bill that would make it illegal to sell water beads designed/marketed for children was introduced on the United States Senate floor.
Senators Bob Casey (D-PA), Tammy Baldwin (D-WI) and Susan Collins (R-ME) introduced the bipartisan legislation -- called “Esther’s Law” -- that would "ban the sale of water beads designed, intended, or marketed as a toy, educational material, art material or sensory tool for children."
According to the Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC), water beads are small and squishy, can grow passed their original size after absorbing water and can be targeted as sensory tools for kids.
“With thousands of children hospitalized in just the last few years, it is clear that this product has no place in the hands of children. This bill will keep kids out of the hospital and prevent more families from facing the nightmare of water bead ingestion," said Sen. Casey.
The law is named after 10-month-old Esther Jo Bethard who lost her life after she swallowed a stray water bead that an older sibling had played with months earlier.
"Esther’s Law" would limit children’s access to water beads by directing CPSC to:
- Establish a ban on water beads products marketed to children as toys, educational materials, sensory tools, or art materials
- Consider regulations on the colors of other water beads that pose an ingestion hazard to limit their attractiveness to children
- Require warning labels on packages of water beads that are used for other purposes
“No family should have to figure out how to explain the death of a child to their siblings, or how to have holidays and birthdays without them. Ever. But especially not because of a toy. Esther's Law will help ensure that other families do not have to endure the same senseless tragedy,” said Taylor Bethard, Esther’s Mom.
Additionally, a bill introduced last year by New Jersey Rep. Frank Joseph Pallone Jr. proposed a ban on water beads marketed for kids but did not include measures on warning labels, limiting the colors of water beads or banning water beads marketed to children as sensory tools.