A Matter of Safety: Recall Awareness

Hundreds of thousands of items are recalled each year, from defective toys to tainted foods to automobiles and medical devices and more. As a consumer, do you know where to find this information?

One of the biggest mistakes that consumers make is assuming that stores are removing these items or that companies are doing the right thing and that isn’t always the case. You need to be responsible for your own safety by vigilantly checking the dates on items. But it goes further than that, if you’ve had a transvaginal mesh device implanted and there is a recall, take it upon yourself to contact your surgeon and find out if the recall affects you. In a perfect world, you would be notified, but again that isn’t always the case.

Below are simple ways that you can monitor recalls to ensure the safety for you as well as your family.

Food & Drug Recalls

The U.S. Food and Drug administration (FDA) oversees recalls that involve foods, drugs and defective medical devices. Animal products are also overseen by the FDA. A complete list of U.S. Government Agencies can be found on USA.gov.

Centers for Disease Control & Prevention (CDC) is in charge of all things disease control, safety and prevention.

The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) handles thousands of consumer recalls that involves defective toys, everyday products and more. They also inform you of what companies have received fines and deaths associated with recalled items.

National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) handles automobile recalls, child seats, tires and much more.

One of the best ways to stay on top of recalls is via Twitter. You can follow these agencies and also set up your account to follow certain #hashtags that would include: #foodsafety, #health, #recalls and the like.

Below are Twitter accounts to follow for this information.

CPSC – @OnSafety

CDC – @CDCgov

FDA – The FDA has many accounts, but their main is: @US_FDA.

NHTSA – @NHSTAgov

USA.gov – @USAgov

TheSafetyReport updates their Twitter account with this information daily as well. Follow us too @NixLawGroup, we’d love to hear from you.

This is not an exhaustive list of government agencies but it does include some of the most prominent that you should monitor. If you’ve been affected by a recalled medical advice or drug or food item, speak to an experienced attorney that can help you understand your rights. Just remember, “Safety First” is “Safety Always.” – Charles M. Hayes