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Fatal gas mix-up in NJ spurs national changes

LTC Liability Monitor, April 13, 2006

Six years ago in Sugarcreek Township, NJ, four residents at The Carriage by the Lake nursing home died after receiving nitrogen, rather than oxygen, to inhale. Because of those deaths, which were the result of mislabeled gas tanks, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration is proposing new regulations to prevent future similar incidents, according to WDTN TV in Dayton, OH.

The FDA would require medical gas containers to have wraparound identification labels. They also call for a color-coding system corresponding to the gasses the tanks contain, and permanent fittings on the containers so that the wrong gas could never be put in once a tank has been filled for the first time.

The FDA is planning a 90-day public comment period, and hopes to put its new rules into effect by the end of 2006, WDTN reported.

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