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Posted by: Linda Chalat
May 05, 2006

Federal Legislation Promoting Safer Pools to be Introduced

To help curb drownings, Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz, D-Fla., will introduce legislation next week providing incentives to states that require safety features in pools and hot tubs. Under the bill, states would receive federal grant money if they require multiple drains with covers that prevent entrapment, vacuum systems with automated stop features when blocked, and fences surrounding all pools and spas. The timing of the legislation being introduced coordinates with Safe Kids Week.

James A. Baker, III, Secretary of State under former President George Bush is publicly supporting the legislation. His granddaughter, 7-year-old Virginia Graeme Baker, drowned in a backyard hot tub, dragged to the bottom by the powerful suction of the spa's drain. She was well-supervised by many adults, but the sunction was so great, it took two men to pull her free from the drain.

"Our hearts were really broken," said Baker, fighting back tears. "Her short life provided us with a treasured love that we can never, never replace." Secretary Baker spoke publicly for the first time about his granddaughter at the National Safe Kids Week kick-off event at the U.S. Capitol Reflecting Pool. “We hope Graeme’s story and the passage of this new legislation will help save lives.”

"I'm here to do what I can to help see that other families are spared the devastation and the pain that can be prevented by a few very simple steps," Baker said.

Drowning Deaths By Entrapment

Deaths like Virginia Baker's aren't uncommon. From 1985 to 2004, there were at least 33 documented drownings in the United States attributed to drain entrapment, as well as hundreds of injuries, the group Safe Kids Worldwide reported.

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Federal Legislation Promoting Safer Pools to be Introduced

Drowning Deaths By Entrapment