2: Carbon Monoxide
Reduce the rate of death from carbon monoxide poisoning by 20 percent from the 1999-2000 average by the year 2013. Other Information:
CPSC will pursue two major approaches to further reduce CO poisoning deaths. We believe that these strategies will also help
reduce injuries associated with carbon monoxide poisonings. We will work to (1) improve or correct products to reduce the
amount of CO emissions, and (2) promote the use of CO alarms in every American home. Specifically, we will: § Develop or strengthen
voluntary standards for specific fuel-burning products. § Encourage the development of more reliable CO alarms. § Encourage
the use of reliable CO alarms in residential dwellings in the United States. § Continue recalls and corrective actions of
products that present CO hazards. § Continue public awareness by issuing public alerts to warn consumers about CO poisoning
hazards and the need for regular maintenance of combustion appliances each year prior to the homeheating season. PERFORMANCE
MEASURES We will use the annual CO poisoning death rate per 10 million populatio n as the primary performance measure to evaluate
our strategic goal. We track product-related residential and recreational CO deaths annually. When appropriate, we will also
estimate and report societal costs or savings. CO poisoning death estimates are based on data from the National Center for
Health Statistics (NCHS) and our Death Certificate File (death certificates for product-related hazards that we buy directly
from the states). Population estimates for the United States are available from the U.S. Census Bureau, U.S. Department of
Commerce. Societal costs include information from our Injury Cost Model and other sources with an assumed cost of $5 million
per statistical life, consistent with economic literature. Note that because the processing of death data reported to NCHS
and to CPSC through the states takes about three years to complete, we will not know whether we reach our goal for 2013 until
2016. OTHER ORGANIZATIONS WITH SIMILAR PROGRAMS Carbon monoxide poisoning is associated with the use of household combustion
appliances, boats, cars, gasoline-powered tools, and farm equipment -- a wide array of products whose jurisdiction is covered
by several federal agencies. CPSC has the primary role in addressing consumer products that produce carbon monoxide hazards.
However, the goal of reducing carbon monoxide deaths is one that is shared by other federal agencies as well as private sector
and not- for-profit organizations. We work with the following agencies and organizations to increase the effectiveness of
our efforts and to avoid duplication. § American Gas Association § American Lung Association § American National Standards
Institute § Association of Home Appliance Manufacturers § Canadian Standards Association § U.S. Centers for Disease Control
and Prevention § U.S. Coast Guard § Colorado Department of Public Health and the Environment § Committee on Indoor Air Quality
§ Consumer Federation of America § U.S. Environmental Protection Agency § U.S. Federal Emergency Management Agency § Gas Appliance
Manufacturers Association § Gas Detection Industry Association § Gas Research Institute § National Association of State Fire
Marshals § National Electrical Manufacturers Association § National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health, U.S. National
Institutes of Health § U.S. Occupational Safety and Health Administration § State and local fire departments and associations
§ Underwriters Laboratories Inc. The effort to make the American public more aware of the hazards of carbon monoxide poisoning
and the availability and use of CO alarms requires the participation of a large number of groups. Fire departments, gas utility
companies, heating contractors, medical groups, alarm manufacturers, gas appliance manufacturers, voluntary standards organizations,
federal, state, and local government agencies, building code organizations, and consumer groups -- all are, and must be, involved
in helping to reduce the deaths and injuries from CO poisoning. We will continue to encourage involvement of all groups.
Objective(s):
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