FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. — In the medieval ages, mothers would emerge under the cover of night, head to the church, and place their unwanted newborns in turntables embedded in the walls, where, on the other side, a nun would take them.
A version of the practice may soon return in Florida.
A bill passed unanimously in the House and advancing in the Senate would allow fire departments, hospitals and EMS stations to install high-tech “newborn infant safety devices,” commonly referred to as “baby boxes,” into their walls. The technology, currently in use in a few states, is designed such that parents, particularly mothers, can drop their babies inside and walk away, never interacting with another person.
