Latest news with #SafeHavenBabyBoxes
Yahoo
05-04-2025
- Health
- Yahoo
Liberty family pushes for Safe Haven Boxes in KC to save newborns
LIBERTY, Mo. — A local family is leading a push for lifesaving technology outside several fire stations across the Kansas City area. The goal is to save the lives of newborn babies who might otherwise be abandoned. A Liberty family said they want to see nearly a dozen Safe Haven Baby Boxes installed at fire stations across the Kansas City area. The nonprofit Safe Haven Baby Boxes said it's climate controlled and designed to ensure the safe and anonymous surrender of infants when a parent is in crisis. When a newborn is put inside, the exterior door locks automatically and an alarm will sound – which notifies emergency responders so they can get the baby to safety. 'It's terrifying, as a woman [and] as a mother, that there are children that are not being safely surrendered,' Kayleigh Wasmer said. 'They're being left in woods and possibly killed and being discarded.' Wasmer said her 1-year-old son Abbott was safely surrendered at the hospital—but that almost wasn't the case. 'It's super emotional for us because his biological mother is a homeless woman in Kansas City who lives in an encampment,' Wasmer said. 'And she had expressed several times about not knowing what she would do with him—whether she was going to leave him in the woods or where she was going to place him.' She said there are no Safe Haven Baby Boxes in Kansas City. Her husband said the closest one is in Savannah, Missouri, which is more than an hour away. There are six baby boxes located in Missouri, according to the nonprofit. 'Kansas City would like to look into joining that list,' Councilman Nathan Willett said. 'If this is obviously a crisis is when something like this happens and if that is a decision that is made, we want to protect life.' Kansas has two, one in Hutchinson and another in Salina. Since taking in and adopting Abbott, they've been pushing for change. 'I would love to have up to 10, just kind of spread out all over in Kansas City and the Northland central area and south Kansas City,' Wasmer said, 'Then, eventually branching out to the smaller cities.' Last week, she posted a call to action on social media, reaching out to city leaders like Councilman Willett. 'We want to make sure that someone is there to make sure that life has hope and make sure that life is supported,' Willett said. On Thursday, Willett introduced a resolution to research Safe Haven Baby Boxes, identifying possible cost and locations for boxes throughout the city. He said experts are looking into the feasibility of several KC fire stations as locations. KCFD said the department's been on board with installing Safe Haven Baby Boxes since the beginning. 'I think so far, they've looked at identifying 9-to-10 as potential candidates,' Willett said. 'That doesn't mean that all of them will be a station that's going to actually get one. I could see the number being anywhere from three-to-five.' Willett also said state money could be up for grabs in funding the boxes. 'In the proposed house budget, there's $250,000 available, and I want Kansas City to be able to go after that money so we can utilize this here,' he said. Wasmer and a spokesperson with the fire department are set to speak at a committee meeting on Tuesday, April 15. The committee could then refer the resolution to full council for a vote that on April 17. . Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
04-04-2025
- Health
- Yahoo
What is a baby box? Bill passes Florida House, what the law would do
Surrendering newborn babies may become easier if a bill that passed unanimously Thursday in the Florida House becomes law. HB 791, from Rep. Nan Cobb, R-Eustis, would authorize hospitals, EMS stations, and fire stations that are staffed 24 hours per day to use wall-mounted, temperature-controlled containers that safely accept and protect infants while notifying attendants. A similar bill was introduced in the 2023 Legislative Session but never made it out of committee. Last year. Gov. Ron DeSantis signed a bill expanding the state's Safe Haven law to allow parents to anonymously surrender infants up to 30 days after birth without penalty, an increase from the previous seven, and to call 911 for EMS personnel to come get the child if transportation was not available. It also allowed a parent who has just given birth to surrender the child to medical staff at the hospital. Here's how the devices work. In some locations around the country fire stations and hospitals have set up so-called "baby boxes," ventilated, climate-controlled incubators installed in an exterior wall with a locking door where a parent may anonymously and safely walk up and leave their child. An automatic alarm notifies staff inside the building that a baby is in there. There are over 320 baby boxes across 20 states, with more than half of them in Indiana, according to Indiana-based Safe Haven Baby Boxes. The boxes run about $15,000, according to an analysis of the bill, with a $500 annual fee and an estimated $5,000-$7,000 in additional fees depending on location. The bill does not require boxes built by a specific company. Surrended baby in Florida: St. Johns baby wasn't found in a box on side of the road; mother surrendered child Baby boxes have not yet been authorized by the state. A 2023 bill to allow them (SB 870) passed several committees but died after Democrats called it a "vendor bill" since currently only one manufacturer makes them, holds the patent, leases them, and charges a yearly fee. Critics, including the similarly named A Safe Haven for Newborns, said they were costly and ineffective. Nonetheless, there are currently six in the state: Chiefland: Chiefland Fire Department, 16 NE 1st St, Chiefland Crystal River: Citrus County Fire Rescue, 800 N Rock Crusher Rd Newberry: Newberry Fire Station #28, 310 NW 250th St Ocala: MLK First Responder Campus, 505 NW MLK Jr. Ave Marion County Fire and Rescue, 1400 SW 6th Ave Spring Hill: Hernando County Fire Department, 3445 Bob Hartung Ct Ocala was the first Florida city to get a baby box in 2020 and the first to have a baby left there. Sometime around New Year's in 2023, a healthy baby girl was dropped off and later adopted by the firefighter who was on duty at the time. Fire stations and EMS personnel who accept surrendered infants must provide any needed emergency services and then take them to a hospital. If the child was surrendered after birth at the hospital, the mother's name is left off of the birth certificate. If there is evidence of abuse or neglect, the hospital will report it to the statewide central abuse hotline and a criminal investigation will be started. Otherwise, medical staff will contact either a local licensed child-placing agency or the statewide central abuse hotline for placement assistance. Any child surrendered is presumed eligible for Medicaid coverage. The parent is presumed to have given up all claims to the child. Anyone who has surrendered a child may reclaim the infant up until the time a court enters a judgment officially terminating their parental rights. According to the nonprofit A Safe Haven for Newborns, there have been about 480 newborn babies surrendered or abandoned in Florida since the first Save Haven law was passed in 2000 under Gov. Jeb Bush. Roughly 415 infants were surrendered in a safe haven location, the organization said. There were 65 infants abandoned in unsafe places such as public restrooms or dumpsters, the nonprofit said. Only 32 of those babies survived. In 2024, 30 newborns were surrendered and one was abandoned, the report said. So far in 2025, four babies were surrendered. Police in Hollywood, Florida, arrested and charged two people in March last year after a construction worker found an infant dead in a dumpster in January. Last month, a dead baby was found in a trash can near a University of Tampa dorm. Nationwide, 4,835 babies were surrendered from 1999 to 2023, according to the National Safe Haven Alliance. 1,715 were abandoned illegally and only 642 of those survived. This article originally appeared on Tallahassee Democrat: Baby box bill passes Florida House. HB 791 is for infant surrender
Yahoo
04-04-2025
- General
- Yahoo
Drop babies off for adoption at KC firehouses? Council will consider drop-box proposal
Rather than seek an abortion, parents who want or need to give their newborns up for adoption anonymously could surrender their babies at climate-controlled boxes installed at Kansas City fire stations under a proposal introduced Thursday by 1st District Councilman Nathan Willett. Willett's resolution would instruct the city manager to study what it would take to begin a 'Safe Haven Baby Boxes' program. Mayor Quinton Lucas referred it to a council committee for further study, which is typical procedure. After study, that committee could refer the resolution to the full council for a vote. But there's no guarantee of that. Some proposals are held off docket indefinitely. Since 1999, all 50 states have enacted laws that allow parents to give their babies up for adoption anonymously. These safe haven laws allow parents to relinquish their parental rights within a time limit — up to a year after birth in some cases — that differs state to state, according to the National Safe Haven Alliance. Safe haven laws have been tweaked in many states, including Missouri and Kansas, allowing parents to surrender their babies by placing them in climate-controlled bassinets at police and fire stations as well as health care facilities and other designated places. The boxes have automatic alert functions that contact emergency responders when a child is left inside so they can be retrieved quickly. Many baby boxes are marketed by a nonprofit company called Safe Haven Baby Boxes Inc., which has more than 300 boxes deployed across the country. Six of those boxes are in Missouri: One each in Carthage, Joplin and Savannah and three in the St. Louis metro area. Kansas has two, in Salina and Hutchinson. Last year, a baby was surrendered in the box at the Mehlville Fire Protection District station in south St. Louis. No babies have been surrendered at those seven other boxes in Missouri and Kansas. Nationwide, 58 babies have been surrendered since the first box was installed in April 2016, according to a spokesperson for Safe Haven Baby Boxes. According to the company, babies left in the boxes are never in danger because the boxes have multiple alarms that alert first responders as soon as a baby is placed inside. There are no cameras to record who left the child. 'The boxes' alarms are tested weekly to ensure there will be no failures. None of these alarm systems have ever failed,' the company's website said. Each box costs $15,000 to $20,000 to lease and install. That is typically underwritten entirely by private donations, the company spokesperson said. Willett's proposed resolution would direct the city manager to identify which fire stations would be able to support a Safe Haven Baby Box, how many would be appropriate to install and how much it would cost.
Yahoo
24-03-2025
- Health
- Yahoo
Decatur-Morgan Hospital to install Safe Haven Baby Box, 16th box in Alabama
DECATUR, Ala. (WHNT) — The Decatur-Morgan Hospital announced Monday that it will install a Safe Haven Baby Box in the emergency department. To celebrate this addition, the hospital will host an installation and opening event on March 31 at 1:30 p.m. 'Providing a Safe Haven Baby Box at Decatur Morgan Hospital is a critical step in ensuring that parents in crisis have a secure and anonymous option,' Kelli Powers, President of Decatur Morgan Hospital said. 'We are honored to be able to offer this resource, reinforcing our commitment to the well-being of our community.' The Safe Haven Baby Box is designed as a safety mechanism that is installed in the exterior wall of the hospital. Once a baby is placed inside the box, the outside door will lock automatically to ensure security while hospital staff examine the baby from the inside. Since 2016, Safe Haven Baby Boxes have provided a discreet and secure option for parents under the Safe Haven Law, which allows the legal surrender of infants at designated locations without fear of prosecution. The organization also operates a 24-hour hotline to provide assistance and guidance to parents in crisis. In October 2024, the Athens-Limestone Hospital installed a Safe Haven Baby Box, which, according to officials, made it the seventh facility across the state to offer the baby boxes. This addition at the Decatur-Morgan Hospital makes it the 16th box in Alabama and the 331st box in the nation. For more information about Safe Haven Baby Boxes, you can visit its website here. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
21-03-2025
- Health
- Yahoo
Baby box officially open in Savannah
SAVANNAH, Mo. (News-Press NOW) — Officials in Andrew County have unveiled a tool that aims to save babies at the Savannah Rural Fire House. A ribbon-cutting and blessing ceremony was held for a new baby box "to bring a potentially life-saving alternative to parents who need to relinquish custody of a newborn." The ribbon cutting featured State Rep. Dean Van Schoiack and Sen. Rusty Black along with Monica Kelsey, founder and CEO of Safe Haven Baby Boxes. "I wish everybody could have seen this whole process go down through my eyes," said Sara Chamberlain, co-chair of Andrew County Community Builders. "The people that have come out to meet us, not even from the city and the entire county, I'm talking other parts of the state, other counties neighboring us." A community effort to raise a goal of $40,000 was achieved to help build and now maintain the baby box located at 107 U.S. Highway 71 in Savannah, Missouri. Kelsey said all the baby boxes are designed and built the same. "We are talking to people in Billings, Montana, and Jacksonville, Florida," Kelsey said. "They have to look the same because when someone is looking for a box, we want them to just be able to google it and see the same thing every time." The box was finished in early December 2024 but training was needed before it could be public. Co-chair of Andrew County Community Builders Steve Smith said the training included making sure everyone was CPR certified (adult and infant), as well as AED certified to be a first responder with the baby box. "This makes sure that not only our ambulance responders are trained in it, that also means that our firefighters are trained in it," Smith said. Once the outer door of the box is opened, an alarm system will alert a monitoring company and the recovery process starts. "It also immediately sends an alarm to a monitoring company who in turn calls Andrew County Sheriff's Office, which is the dispatch for all the agencies," Smith said. "As soon as they receive the alarm, they dispatch out the alarm to the ambulance, then fire, then law enforcement." All three agencies will respond to the alarm and steps will be taken once on the scene to treat and transport the child. Across the nation, there are 325 baby boxes and now Savannah's is the sixth in Missouri. Kelsey said she has met a lot of the babies that have been dropped off and has relationships with the adoptive parents as well as the parents who surrendered the kids. "For me to be able to walk alongside them and be that safe place for them to fall, just kind of brings a little bit of peace to me, knowing that my birth mom didn't have that so I'm being that for someone else." Kelsey said.
