Ohio state health officials are urging the Environmental Protection Agency to approve a commercial agricultural pesticide for home use against bed bugs, but EPA says it is too harmful to children.
According to state officials, the pesticide Propoxur is safer than other dangerous chemicals homeowners have been using to kill the unwanted household pests.
“We’re seeing increased misuse,” said Matt Beal of the Ohio Department of Agriculture. “We’ve had people treated at hospitals.”
The federal agency is concerned that the pesticide may cause damage to children’s nervous systems if they are exposed to too high concentrations of it, said EPA’s pesticide office.
“I would prefer we were talking about a different chemical,” said an EPA spokesman. “The safety findings we need to make are formidable.”