Center for Public Health Initiatives, University of Pennsylvania
Scott Burris, JD •
Center for Public Health Law Research
Alexander Wagenaar, PhD •
University of Florida
This study, published in American Journal of Preventive Medicine, details state distracted-driving policy across all 50 states and the District of Columbia. The study finds, as of 2011, 39 states and the District of Columbia had at least one form of restriction on the use of mobile communication devices in effect..
This study presents an empirical analysis of domestic violence case resolution in North Carolina from 2004 to 2010. The study finds that penalities, at least as set at the current levels, do not deter future arrests and convictions.
It finds 44 states and Washington, DC, passed youth sports TBI laws between 2009 and 2012. No state’s youth sports TBI law focuses on primary prevention. Instead, such laws focus on increasing coaches’ and parents’ ability to identify and respond to TBIs and reducing the immediate risk of multiple TBIs.
New Jersey is the first state in the United States to require novice drivers to put a red reflective decal on their license plate as part of their graduated driver’s license law. The decals signal the young driver’s probationary status to other drivers and law enforcement. A study by Allison Curry, PhD, MPH and her colleagues at the Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia found that New Jersey’s law has prevented more than 1,600 crashes and helped police officers enforce regulations unique to new drivers.
In this Critical Opportunities presentation, Jeffrey Swanson, PhD, shares recommendations for the use of law to reduce the problem of gun violence. The recommendations are a package of policies that were originally presented at the Johns Hopkins Gun Policy Summit in January 2013.
Jasen Kunz, JD, of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, suggests in his Critical Opportunities presentation that the Model Aquatic Health Code provides sample evidence-based guidelines that can be adopted to help reduce rates of pool-related injuries and illness.
The Problem: In 2016, roughly 10,500 people died in motor vehicle crashes involving an alcohol-impaired driver, accounting for nearly one-third of all traffic related deaths. CDC: Impaired Driving Factsheet. Approximately 6,500 (62%) of these individuals had a blood alcohol content (BAC) level of 0.08 g/dL or greater. The remaining fatalities consisted of passengers (29%) and non-passengers (9%).
The Problem: Firearms accounted for 39,659 deaths and 71,417 injuries in 2017. CDC:Faststats Firearms are used in 84 percent of the homicides of individuals between the ages 10 and 24. CDC: Youth Violence Fact Sheet.
