The death of a 3-year-old Oceanside boy last year has prompted legislation to ban push pins in California kindergarten classrooms, preschools and daycare centers.
Assemblyman Marty Block, D-San Diego, said the brightly colored pins used to tack items onto bulletin board or office partitions can be extremely hazardous if swallowed by young children.
Block said the various colors of push pins can attract children, and if they are swallowed and get stuck in the throat, the Heimlich maneuver commonly is not always effective in extracting them because of their shape.
Assembly Bill 1820 stemmed from the death of 3-year-old Tyler Howell last year, Block said.
Newspaper reports at the time, by U-T San Diego, reported that the Oceanside toddler choked to death at a private Montessori school after he swallowed a push pin.
Block said that alternative products exist to hang items onto bulletin boards and he knows of no opposition to AB 1820. The bill, introduced this week, has not yet been scheduled for public hearing.
PHOTO CREDIT: A teacher leads a song with the children at Carmichael Parent Participation Preschool on Sept. 12, 2007. Sacramento Bee file / Florence Low
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