Michigan lawmakers propose statewide hyperbaric chamber safety bills after child's death
After 5-year-old Thomas Cooper died in a hyperbaric chamber explosion at the Oxford Center in Troy, Michigan, last year, two of the city's representatives in Lansing partnered together to find a solution.
On Tuesday, Feb. 24, a package of bills was introduced in the Michigan House and Senate seeking to establish statewide safety standards for hyperbaric chambers, along with strict licensing and training requirements. Spearheaded by Democratic Reps. Stephanie Chang, D-Detroit and Sharon MacDonell, D-Troy, the four bills also push for routine inspections of standalone facilities and mandatory informed consent of their patients.
"What we have really sought to do with these bills is try to make sure that nothing like that ever happens again," said Sen. Stephanie Chang, D-Detroit.
"We can't bring Thomas Cooper back, but we can try to make sure that no other family has to experience this kind of tragedy," said Rep. Sharon MacDonell, D-Troy.
"They'll have to meet nationally recognized engineering and fire safety standards. They have to have actual medical professionals working in the facilities," said MacDonell. "People need to follow the rules. They need to treat it as a medical center; they need to tell the truth to clients."
The bill package also explores the creation of a fund from the Michigan Department of Treasury to hold the licensing fees it collects from centers to pay for the inspections.
While in its early stages, the packages already received bipartisan support, with Republican Sen. Michael Webber, R-Rochester Hills, saying, "This is simply a matter of public safety. People are seeking out this treatment as a remedy for health conditions that have affected their lives, and bad actors are putting profits ahead of people's health — which puts patients at risk, and in one case, resulted in the tragic death of a five-year-old child."
"These bills would regulate these establishments similar to hospitals or other health care providers and prevent careless facility operators endangering more people," Webber added. "I was happy to co-sponsor these bills and look forward to being involved in getting these bills passed in the Senate."
Chang says these guidelines aren't designed to punish, but rather to support a therapy that offers life-changing benefits for patients when administered safely.
"It would just be done in a way that is supporting the great actors in this space and making sure that we hold the bad actors in this space accountable," said Chang.
Four people, including Tami Peterson, the former CEO of the Oxford Center, have been charged in the deadly explosion and will now stand trial.
Peterson, 58, of Brighton, as well as Jeff Mosteller, 64, of Clinton Township, the center's safety director, and Gary Marken, 65, of Spring Arbor, were charged with second-degree murder. Aleta Moffitt, 60, of Rochester Hills, is charged with involuntary manslaughter and intentionally placing false information on a medical record as a medical provider.
