[Federal Register Volume 59, Number 42 (Thursday, March 3, 1994)]
[Presidential Documents]
[Pages 10049-10050]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 94-5072]


[[Page Unknown]]

[Federal Register: March 3, 1994]




                        Presidential Documents 



                Proclamation 6651 of March 1, 1994

 

National Poison Prevention Week, 1994

                By the President of the United States of America

                A Proclamation

                Keeping families healthy is an integral part of 
                strengthening our Nation's future. It is the 
                cornerstone in America's efforts to provide security 
                for every one of our citizens. Yet, in this great 
                Nation of wisdom and unparalleled potential, the 
                American Association of Poison Control Centers 
                estimates that almost one million American children are 
                exposed to potentially poisonous medicines and 
                household chemicals each year. This single statistic is 
                appalling, but it is also correctable, for we are 
                certain in the knowledge that accidental poisonings are 
                preventable. This week, we recognize that it is one of 
                our duties as a society to do everything in our power 
                to prevent injuries and deaths caused by poisoning.

                As the United States observes the 33rd National Poison 
                Prevention Week, we are able to celebrate some small, 
                but significant, triumphs. That the number of childhood 
                deaths from poisoning annually has declined from 450 to 
                49 over the past thirty years is a testament to the 
                dedicated efforts of countless citizens actively 
                involved with poison control programs across the 
                country. National requirements of child-resistant 
                packaging for medicines have helped to limit dangerous 
                exposure. Poison control centers, pharmacies, and 
                public health centers have worked together to 
                distribute vital information regarding poison 
                prevention to our families and communities, and these 
                measures have, indeed, saved lives.

                If we are to end the tragedy of childhood poisonings 
                once and for all, we must continually remind ourselves 
                to take the basic steps necessary to prevent this 
                occurrence in our own homes. Safety measures, such as 
                using child-resistant packaging correctly and keeping 
                potentially harmful substances out of children's reach, 
                can mean the difference between health and injury, 
                between life and death. During this week, we must seek 
                to educate ourselves and others about all the ways we 
                can work to avoid this kind of senseless loss. 
                America's parents must take primary responsibility for 
                this effort. Our Nation's children deserve no less.

                To encourage the American people to learn more about 
                the dangers of accidental poisonings and to take more 
                preventive measures, the Congress, by joint resolution 
                approved September 26, 1961 (75 Stat. 681), has 
                authorized and requested the President to issue a 
                proclamation designating the third week of March of 
                each year as ``National Poison Prevention Week.''

                NOW, THEREFORE, I, WILLIAM J. CLINTON, President of the 
                United States of America, do hereby proclaim the week 
                beginning March 20, 1994, as National Poison Prevention 
                Week. I call upon all Americans to observe this week by 
                participating in appropriate ceremonies and activities 
                and by learning how to prevent accidental poisonings 
                among children.

                IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my hand this 
                first day of March, in the year of our Lord nineteen 
                hundred and ninety-four, and of the Independence of the 
                United States of America the two hundred and 
                eighteenth.

                    (Presidential Sig.)>

[FR Doc. 94-5072
Filed 3-1-94; 4:17 pm]
Billing code 3195-01-P