BETHLEHEM, Pa. — There soon could be legislation that would protect children from accidental carbon monoxide incidents at child care facilities in the state.
State Rep. Jeanne McNeill, D-Lehigh, proposed House Bill 156, which has passed the state House and now heads to the state Senate.
A release from McNeill's office cited an October 2022 incident at Happy Smiles Learning Center in Allentown, where more than two dozen children and adults were hospitalized for carbon monoxide poisoning.
"Carbon monoxide leaks can easily go undetected, leading to tragic outcomes."State Rep. Jeanne McNeill, D-Lehigh, in a release
"Detecting carbon monoxide poisoning is difficult with children," McNeill said in a release.
"It has no smell, no color and typically gives symptoms of headaches and nausea, which children and educators wouldn’t typically associate with carbon monoxide poisoning.
"Carbon monoxide leaks can easily go undetected, leading to tragic outcomes."
Former Allentown Fire Department Capt. John Christopher, now retired, called it "a potentially lethal situation," at the time.
“When our guys went in to tend to the child, one of the monitors on the equipment started going off alerting us to the fact there could be CO in the air," Christopher told LehighValleyNews.com.
"We went out and got the meters off the engine and did in fact find very high levels.”
'Protect the youngest and most vulnerable'
Allentown City Council amended and approved an ordinance in February 2022 that requires home, group and child care centers to install carbon monoxide detectors.
But on a state level, such legislation hasn't been passed. And there are no statewide carbon monoxide alarm requirements in place, according to the release.
"This legislation would protect the youngest and most vulnerable part of our population."State Rep. Jeanne McNeill
House Bill 494 was passed by the House in April 2023 with a 158-43 vote. The bill also was in response to the Allentown daycare incident and would have required carbon monoxide detectors to be installed at child care centers, with other specific requirements.
McNeill was the prime sponsor of that bill, alongside local co-sponsors Rep. Josh Siegel and state Rep. Ryan Mackenzie, who is now in Congress.
The bill moved to the Senate and was then referred to the Health and Human Services Committee in May 2023.
House Bill 156 would require child care facilities "housed in buildings with carbon monoxide sources to be equipped with at least one carbon monoxide alarm," the release says.
The number of alarms required also would depend on the size of the building.
"This legislation would protect the youngest and most vulnerable part of our population," McNeill said. "This is a sensible safety precaution that needs to be implemented."
