Michigan lawmakers are looking to regulate hyperbaric oxygen chambers, after a mid-treatment explosion killed a 5-year-old boy in January.
Hyperbaric chambers are regulated in some states, but Michigan is not one of them. State Senator Stephanie Chang (D-Detroit), and state Representative Sharon MacDonell (D-Troy) are seeking to change that by drafting a bipartisan bill aiming to protect those seeking treatment from similar tragedies.
“In the state of Michigan we have an absolute wild west when it comes to hyperbaric chambers,” said MacDonell. “There are no regulations, there are no licensing requirements, and there’s nobody checking up to make sure the machines are being maintained properly.”
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has approved hyperbaric oxygen therapy for treatment of 13 different disorders, including severe burns, decompression sickness, and cases of trapped air and gas bubbles in blood vessels. Some treatment centers have claimed hyperbaric chambers can be used to treat conditions such as cancer, Alzheimer’s, autism, and Lyme disease, but these have not been approved by the FDA.
MacDonell said the bill would ensure clients are informed of FDA recommendations and risks of the treatment. She also hopes it will limit the therapeutic services to places accredited by the Undersea & Hyperbaric Medical Society, which sets standards for patient care and operational safety.
“If this tragedy ever happened again and I hadn’t tried in my position to do something to prevent this from happening again, I would just feel awful, said MacDonell. “So I just had no choice.”
The owner of the Oxford Center, the clinic where the deadly January explosion happened, along with three other employees, was arraigned earlier this month on criminal charges, for failing to follow both safety protocols, and the recommendations of the hyperbaric oxygen chamber manufacturer.
MacDonell predicts bipartisan support for the bill. She and Chang are still in early stages of drafting, and hope to see it voted on in the fall.
