The U.S. Senate passed the Youth Poisoning Prevention Act, bipartisan legislation led by U.S. Senators John Curtis (R-UT), Tammy Duckworth (D-IL), Bernie Moreno (R-OH), and Tammy Baldwin (D-WI) to help prevent youth suicide by banning high-concentration sodium nitrite from being available to the public. Since 2017, the National Poison Data System has shown a sharp annual increase in young adults ingesting the substance with suicidal intent. There is no recognized household or consumer use for high-concentration sodium nitrite, yet the sale of this dangerous substance by retailers remains unregulated, resulting in tragic consequences.
“Too many young people are being put at risk by easy access to dangerous poisons,” said Senator Curtis. “I am proud to see our commonsense legislation to help protect vulnerable Americans, strengthen consumer safety, and prevent needless youth tragedies pass the Senate.”
“High-concentration sodium nitrite is a textbook example of a deadly product that should never be sold to consumers—let alone to our kids,” said Senator Duckworth. “Every child’s life is precious. We must ensure that our laws protecting our kids are up to date to protect against emerging deadly hazards. Our bipartisan legislation would immediately take this lethal substance off the shelves—it’s a no-brainer that must be sent to the President’s desk swiftly to help us protect our children.”
“I heard from a family who lost their daughter to this dangerous substance, and we have to do more to make sure no other American family suffers the same heartache,” said Senator Baldwin. “As new, deadly products like sodium nitrite become available to children, we must update our laws to keep these deadly chemicals out of the hands of our kids and prevent any further tragic deaths. I am proud to have worked with my Democratic and Republican colleagues to protect Wisconsin families, and I am glad that we are now one step closer to making our bill the law of the land.”
Background:
The Youth Poisoning Prevention Act would:
- Ban the sale of high-concentration sodium nitrite to consumers by adding such products to the list of banned hazardous products under the Consumer Product Safety Act (15 U.S.C. 2057);
- Define “high concentration of sodium nitrite” as a concentration of sodium nitrite greater than 10% (as there is no recognized household or consumer use of high-concentration sodium nitrite); and
- Not interfere with the highly regulated use of high-concentration sodium nitrite for commercial and industrial purposes.
The full text of the bill can be found here.
The Youth Poisoning Prevention Act is endorsed by the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention, American Academy of Pediatrics, Consumer Reports, Center for Science in the Public Interest, Public Citizen, Consumer Federation of America, National Consumers League and Crisis Text Line—as well as a number of families who tragically lost their children to self-poisoning via high-concentration sodium nitrite ingestion.
“This law was written in the names of children who should still be alive,” said Kristin Jónsson, mother of the late Kristine Jónsson. “For years, high-purity sodium nitrite was sold with no guardrails despite mounting evidence that it had become a preferred suicide method. Today, we chose public health over preventable tragedy.”
“Every parent who came forward with me did so with one hope: that no other family would have to live this nightmare,” said Ruth Scott, mother of the late Mikael Scott. “We fought in our children’s names, and today their lives have left a legacy that will protect others.”
“The best wrongful death case is the one that never has to be filed,” said an attorney for the grieving families. “This law recognizes that prevention is always more powerful than accountability after the fact. Today, this country chose to save lives instead of counting them.”
“The American Foundation for Suicide Prevention applauds Congress for passing the bipartisan Youth Poisoning Prevention Act, marking a significant milestone in a years-long bipartisan effort to prevent suicide by reducing access to a highly lethal means,” said Laurel Stine, J.D., M.A., Executive Vice President and Chief Policy & Advocacy Officer at the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention. “Since this legislation was first introduced in 2023, its bipartisan champions have remained steadfast in advancing an evidence-based approach to saving lives. Reducing access to highly lethal means is one of the most effective, evidence-based strategies for preventing suicide. By restricting consumer access to this dangerous product while preserving access for legitimate commercial, industrial, and food preservation uses, this legislation will help create time and distance between individuals in crisis and a highly lethal substance while maintaining access for legitimate purposes. We thank the bill’s bipartisan champions for their persistence and leadership and urge the President to sign the Youth Poisoning Prevention Act into law.”
