Abstract
Analysis of the impact of alcohol as an underlying and non-underlying cause of death in Wisconsin showed a marked increase between 1963 and 1977 in the frequency of deaths reported with mention of alcohol. The rate of deaths for which alcohol was a non-underlying cause rose more sharply during this period (2.4 per 100.000 to 9.3) than that of alcoholrelated causes (4.6/100.000 to 9.0). Comparison of motor vehicle driver death certificates with blood alcohol test reports for these drivers shows 90% underreporting of alcohol on death certificates. This fact, along with other information on underreporting, shows that the approximately 650 deaths now being reported with mention of alcohol annually in Wisconsin, repre-