More information, including the following, can be found at http://www.peopleforcleanbeds.org/

A new law already effective in California, and soon to be enacted nationwide by the Consumer Products Safety Commission (CPSC) requires mattresses to resist ignition from open flames, even though a 1973 federal law already requires all mattresses to resist ignition from burning cigarettes, and mattress fires have already declined greatly. Since it requires toxic chemicals in the surface of all new mattresses to meet the new law, we think the risks of the new law outweigh the benefits.

Most people will think, it can't be that bad, it is probably OK. Please consider the following:

The CPSC hopes to save up to 300 lives annually after ten or more years, after all existing mattresses are replaced. This seems overly optimistic and the real number saved may be only 100, 50, 10, or even zero. With 300 million people in the United States unknowingly taking the risk of sleeping in toxic chemicals, they avoid the one in one million risk of dying in a mattress fire.  Even before the new law, your risk of dying from toxic chemicals, is greater than your risk of dying in a car accident. See Odds of Dying.

Every life is important and it is hard to argue with fire safety. However, if this law kills more than it saves, it is clearly wrong. It has the potential to kill millions of people. If only 15% of our mattresses prove toxic -- 45 Million people will die.

1. The chemicals used to flameproof mattresses have never been studied for human exposure risk in this application.
2. We know almost all the chemicals to flameproof mattresses are acutely toxic and many also cause cancer.
3. The science of Toxicology uses high-dose short-term exposure on various animals to predict the effect of low-dose long-term exposure on humans. This is exactly the risk in mattresses, close chronic exposure eight hour per day for the rest of our and our children's lives.
4. The developing fetus and young child is particularly vulnerable to certain environmental toxins. Over the past three decades, researchers have found that remarkably low-level exposures to these toxins are linked with less overt symptoms of toxicity—intellectual impairments, behavioral problems, spontaneous abortions, or preterm births.
5. Antimony Trioxide is the most commonly used flame retardant in mattresses to meet the new law. Antimony is a heavy metal like Lead with similar toxic effects. Antimony is proven to leach from mattresses and linked to heart damage, cancer, and SIDS.
6. Boric Acid, also a roach killer, is commonly used as a flame retardant in mattresses to meet the new law. It is known to attack the developing fetus and testicles as it primary targets. In addition to death, birth defects, infertility, and sterility, studies show overexposure reduces sexual activity in humans.
7. Children could be poisoned from sucking on a Boric Acid mattress. There are 6,463 cases of Boric Acid Poisoning in the US each year.
8. Formaldehyde, Bromine, and other dangerous chemicals are also used in many systems. It is difficult if not impossible to find the truth. Even mattress manufacturers usually don't know which chemicals are present in their flame barrier systems. Even if safe systems exist, all mattresses must be safe or we will eventually harm or kill a percentage of our people. If 33% prove toxic, 100 Million people are harmed. If only 1% prove toxic, it is still 3 Million people harmed or killed.
9. We should learn from our toxic legacies of the past. We have made previous mistakes with flame retardants such as PCB's banned in the 70's, Tris, Asbestos, and now PBDE's are being found in peoples bodies and women's breast milk in alarming and growing amounts.
10. The chemical industry estimates we save up to 960 people per year with the 1.2 Billion pounds of flame retardants the US uses annually. Now we will be required to sleep in them too. We have already killed 300,000 people, and continue to kill 10,000 annually, with Asbestos alone.
11. Consumers will be forced to pay an average of $100 more for every new mattress purchased to meet this law.
12. The innerspring mattress industry through their trade association ISPA went to the CPSC and asked for this law. It seems clear it benefits the large companies by restraining competition, forcing the smaller companies out of business, and raising prices, revenue, and profits.
13. Even the man who started and wrote this law in California, Whitney Davis, is now having second thoughts: "The Problem: the only chemicals they can use to achieve compliance are listed as toxic to humans by the EPA.” and "You don't know until 10 years down the road and there's a problem," he said. "We feel responsible."

We have made progress with many Doctors and people opposing this law. The CPSC has received over 500 public comments opposing the law when they would normally only receive about 20 comments from interested parties on most proposals.

We have gotten news for the issue from the Washington Post, San Francisco Chronicle, and many other newspapers across the country, as well as TV news from network affiliates.

Please Help. Please vote here. Email the CPSC. Email and call your legislators. Email and tell your friends. Email, write, and call your local news media. It is never to late to try to stop this law and potentially save millions of people.

How to get a bed prescription: If you are in California and need to obtain a  prescription for your child, you will need to contact your family physician or pediatrician.  You may explain your findings and request a prescription which should state NO CHEMICALS or this child requires chemical free bedding or products.