A cervical collar has a front component formed from a compressible foam material and defines a recess constituting part of a tracheal opening. The collar also has a height adjustment mechanism secured to the front component which forms a substantially rigid border about the tracheal opening, and a sternum pad formed from a compressible foam material. The height adjustment mechanism selectively connects the front component to the sternum pad at a permanently locked position among a plurality of predefined distances.