Texas now requires public school campuses to keep a suction-based anti-choking device where students eat, as long as districts can obtain one through donations or dedicated funds, and New York City has passed a similar requirement that has not taken effect. Only one such device has federal marketing authorization, however, and that authorization covers use only after standard first aid has failed. The FDA's guidance, updated in March, still tells parents, teachers and caregivers to start with established rescue steps such as back blows and abdominal thrusts.
That order matters because a person who cannot breathe can suffer brain injury within minutes. The FDA warns that using a device before established protocols "could delay critical life-saving action," partly because taking a device out of its packaging and assembling it takes time.
