[Federal Register Volume 87, Number 56 (Wednesday, March 23, 2022)]
[Presidential Documents]
[Pages 16369-16370]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2022-06248]


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  Federal Register / Vol. 87, No. 56 / Wednesday, March 23, 2022 / 
Presidential Documents  

[[Page 16369]]


                Proclamation 10349 of March 18, 2022

                
National Poison Prevention Week, 2022

                By the President of the United States of America

                A Proclamation

                Each year, more than 2 million poisoning cases are 
                reported in the United States--some of which are 
                tragically fatal, but many of which are preventable. 
                While we have made great strides in the decades since 
                National Poison Prevention Week was first observed 60 
                years ago--including a decline in unintentional 
                poisoning--poisoning remains a risk, especially for 
                children and older Americans. During National Poison 
                Prevention Week, we raise awareness about the dangers 
                posed by poisonous substances, precautions people can 
                take to prevent an incident, and how to respond in a 
                poison emergency.

                Each year, an average of 31 children die from 
                unintended poisonings at home, and an estimated 75,000 
                children under the age of five end up in hospital 
                emergency departments from poisoning. Approximately 85 
                percent of unintentional poisonings take place in the 
                home where medicines and harmful chemicals are stored.

                To prevent children from unintentionally ingesting 
                poisonous household products, it is important to keep 
                these products out of their sight and beyond their 
                reach. Items such as hand sanitizer, laundry detergent, 
                medications, coin cell batteries, cleaning products, 
                and liquid nicotine should be stored in child-resistant 
                packaging. Medications should be safely secured, and if 
                unused, properly discarded. For elderly Americans--
                particularly those who may have become isolated due to 
                the pandemic--it is important that household products 
                are secured in their original packaging and that 
                medications are clearly labeled to avoid accidental 
                ingestion or the mistaking of medications.

                Health professionals working around the clock and 
                responding to millions of calls each year at poison 
                control centers are critical to our Nation's response. 
                They not only help the public in need of assistance or 
                information, they are also a tremendous asset to health 
                care providers, health departments, law enforcement, 
                and first responders.

                If you suspect that you or someone else has been 
                poisoned, do not wait for signs of poisoning. 
                Immediately call the Poison Control Help line at 800-
                222-1222. For more information, go to 
                poisonhelp.hrsa.gov.

                Poison awareness, control, and education are essential 
                to saving lives. During National Poison Prevention 
                Week, we recommit to raising awareness about the 
                dangers of accidental poisonings and taking the 
                necessary precautions to prevent and respond quickly to 
                these incidents and protect our loved ones.

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

                NOW, THEREFORE, I, JOSEPH R. BIDEN JR., President of 
                the United States of America, do hereby proclaim March 
                20 through March 26, 2022, to be National Poison 
                Prevention Week. I call upon all Americans to observe

[[Page 16370]]

                this week by taking actions to safeguard their families 
                and friends from poisonous products, chemicals, and 
                medicines often found in our homes, and to raise 
                awareness of these dangers to prevent accidental 
                injuries and deaths.

                IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my hand this 
                eighteenth day of March, in the year of our Lord two 
                thousand twenty-two, and of the Independence of the 
                United States of America the two hundred and forty-
                sixth.
                
                
                    (Presidential Sig.)

[FR Doc. 2022-06248
Filed 3-22-22; 8:45 am]
Billing code 3395-F2-P