After years of trying, the U.S. government may finally mandate safer table saws

Tom Noffsinger stands in his garage workshop, where he uses a SawStop table saw for woodworking at his home in Raleigh, North Carolina. About 20 years ago, Noffsinger had a table saw accident and almost lost his thumb. (Cornell Watson for NPR)

One day about 20 years ago, Tom Noffsinger experienced every woodworker's worst nightmare: One final cut on his table saw before knocking off for the day turned into a trip to the emergency room. It was afternoon, and he'd been in his shop since morning.

"I was a little tired. I should've quit," Noffsinger says. "I ran my hand right into the blade and nearly cut my thumb off."