The Center for Disease Control’s Winnable Battles were constituted in 2010 and identify key public
health priorities where quick, measurable impact can be achieved to improve
health and well-being in the United States. Motor Vehicle Safety is one of
these battles and an area where public health professionals look with hopeful
eyes to implement known, effective strategies on a large scale to improve
outcomes.
Timeline
1910 – New York implemented the first law in the United
States against drinking and driving5
1953 – Colorado State Medical Society’s policy supporting
the use and installation of lap belts is published3
1965 – Physicians for Automotive Safety is formed whose
mission is to improve motor vehicle occupant protection7
1968 – Federal law required all vehicles be equipped with
seat belts4
1971 – Initial collection of emergency department data
from nationwide hospitals National Electronic Injury Surveillance System
(NEISS) created by the Consumer Product Safety Commision2
1978 – Tennessee passes the first child passenger safety
law requiring infants and young children to use child restraint systems7
1984 – New York State passed the first legislation which
mandated the use of seat belts4
1984 – The National Minimum Drinking Act mandated states
to make the drinking age 215
1985 – Injury in America published by the National
Research Council recommended Congress to establish a CDC program at preventing
injury1
1990 – Injury Control Act passed by congress authorized
the National Center for Injury Prevention and Control as part of the CDC1
1961 – Wisconsin passes legislation requiring the use of
seat belts in front outboard seat positions3
2000 – The national illegal limit for impaired driving
was set at 0.08 BAC by Congress5
2011 – Safe Teen and Novice Driver Uniform Protection Act
introduced in Congress to establish minimal federal requirements for state
graduated licensing laws6
CDC 2015 Targets
The CDC has identified measurable target outcomes for each Winnable Battle. Let’s have a look at
targets for Motor
Vehicle Safety8
That’s a pretty major reduction! Let’s graph those numbers:
In Colorado, that steep of a slope gets you qualified as a
black diamond. In other words, pretty challenging and best suited for the most
ambitious.
SO HOW ARE WE DOING?!?
MAKING PROGRESS….but motor vehicle injury is still a leading
cause of death in the United States9. Motor vehicle crashes were
responsible for more than 2.3 million drivers and passengers ending up in the
Emergency Room in 2009, the most recent year for which comprehensive data is
available10.
Healthy People
2020 Goals and Objectives
Motor vehicle injury prevention aims to prevent and
reduce the consequences of unintentional injuries, as noted in the Healthy
People 2020 Goal for Injury Prevention.
There are several factors that influence the risk and consequences of an
motor vehicle injury such as individual behaviors (drinking or wearing a seat
belt), physical environment (safety of motor vehicles or clear road signs),
access to services (accessibility of hospitals and trauma care) and social
environment (laws regarding driving).
All of the determinants for motor vehicle injury risk can be targeted
for interventions that aim to decrease the number of motor vehicle injuries.
Interventions
1.
Ignition interlocks for convicted DWI offenders
has been shown to decrease the number of re-arrests for driving under the
influence.
2.
Security checkpoints should be expanded to
decrease the incidence of impaired driving.
3.
Primary enforcement seat belt laws which would
allow police officers to pull drivers over on the basis of any occupant not
wearing a seat belt.
4.
Graduated driver licensing policies involving a
three stage system (learner’s permit, probationary license and full license).
5.
Prohibit use of a cell phone while driving for
teenage drivers to decrease distractions.
Group
Recommendations
The key strategies developed by the CDC should be adopted
and expanded across the country by state and local public health organizations.
Enforcement of seat belt laws, graduated licensing, limitations on cell phone
use while driving, and checkpoints and ignition interlocks are all important
and effective interventions to continue and grow.
Building on the interventions highlighted by the Center
for Disease Control, it is imperative that efforts focus on reducing
distractions for drivers. The National
Highway Traffic Safety Administration reports that driver inattention is the
leading factor in most crashes and near-crashes11. A robust approach
mixing education and enforcement must be pursued in order to reduce the number
of crashes and the nearly $700,000,000 in costs associated with crash-related
deaths in Colorado alone12.
1.
Expand prohibition on cell phone and smart phone
use, including text messaging and smart phone applications, to all drivers,
regardless of age, in all U.S. states and territories. Allow for primary enforcement of the law.
2.
Require driving education professionals to incorporate
evidence-based curricula to educate new drivers about the risks and
consequences of distracted driving.
3.
Set strict standards for in-vehicle technology
on all new vehicles that expands the use of voice-activated controls and
minimizes the need for manual controls that cause greater distraction to
drivers.
Additional Resources
CDC Website on Motor Vehicle Safety
Motor Vehicle-Related Injury Prevention from the National
Business Group on Health
Official US Government Website for Distracted Driving
References
1.
Wikipedia.
(December 2012) National Center for Injury Prevention and Control. Retrieved from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/National_Center_for_Injury_Prevention_and_Control
2.
Division
of Hazard and Injury Data Systems, US Consumer Product Safety Commission.
(March 2000). The National Electronic
Injury Surveillance System: A Tool for Researchers. Retrieved from http://www.cpsc.gov//PageFiles/106626/2000d015.pdf
3. The History of
Seat Belt Development. Retrieved from http://www.stnonline.com/resources/seat-belts/the-history-of-seat-belt-development
4.
Wikipedia. (February 2013). Seat Belt Legislation in the United States.
Retrieved from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Seat_belt_legislation_in_the_United_States
5.
Bavely, Stella.
(January 2013). The History of
Drunk Driving Laws in the U.S. Retrieved
from http://www.lifesafer.com/blog/the-history-of-drunk-driving-laws-in-the-u-s/
6.
The
saferoads4teens Coalition. The STANDUP Act
~ S. 528/H.R. 1515. Retrieved from http://www.saferoads4teens.org/standup-act
7.
Stewart, Deborah
D. (February 2009). More than Forty
Years of Progress for Child Passenger Protection. Retrieved from http://www.saferidenews.com/srndnn/LinkClick.aspx?fileticket=NIPfcuqNL1U%3d&tabid=200
8. CDC. Winnable Battles: Motor Vehicle
Safety. Available at http://www.cdc.gov/WinnableBattles/targets/Motor/.
Accessed May 7, 2013.
9.
CDC. WISQARS (Web-based Injury Statistics Query and Reporting System).
Atlanta, GA: US Department of Health and Human Services, CDC; 2010. Available
at http://www.cdc.gov/injury/wisqars. Accessed October 12, 2010.
10.
CDC. Vital Signs: Nonfatal, motor vehicle-occupant injuries (2009) and seat
belt use (2008) among adults—United States. MMWR 2011; 59.
11.
National Survey of Distracted and
Drowsy Driving. US Department of Transportation
(DOT), National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), (2003, July).
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