Governor George E. Pataki recently signed into law legislation sponsored by Senator Kemp Hannon that will promote advances in the research and prevention of Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS) by requiring the adoption of standard autopsy protocols for any child under the age of one year who dies of unknown causes.

The U.S. Centers for Disease Control (CDC) define SIDS as the unexpected death of a previously healthy infant between two weeks and one year-of-age or unexplained death after a complete autopsy examination. The new law will help ensure that comprehensive autopsies are conducted in every suspected SIDS case, so that parents can feel confident that the SIDS diagnosis is correct. The law does not require that an autopsy be performed, just the protocols for procedures that are performed be standard.

Hannon, chair of the Senate Health Committee, said, "This law is vital in our fight against infant mortality and I look forward to partnering with Governor Pataki on continued legislation leading to the right start in life and a healthy childhood for all."

The state has provided $1 million in funding to support a campaign to combat SIDS. This campaign alone has helped to dramatically reduce the number of SIDS cases in New York State from 210 in 1994 to 115 in 2000, which is a decline of 45 percent.

The New York State Health Department also supports the New York State Center for Sudden Infant Death at SUNY Stonybrook and other satellite offices in Albany, Buffalo, and Syracuse with a grant of $767,000. This contract provides a statewide program that will educate the public about the risks associated with SIDS. It also ensures that support services will be available to all families who have experienced SIDS.

Specific program objectives include: 1) Support to families through home visits by trained professionals; 2) training to emergency services such as police and EMTs, so that they can better handle infant death cases and have the skills to respond to the families in a supportive manner; 3) proper collection, analysis, and dissemination of epidemiological information to the public regarding infant deaths; and, 4) continued implication of the department's successful "Back to Sleep" education campaign that has significantly reduced the number of SIDS deaths.