Effective July 1, 2000, Florida's universal helmet law was amended to exclude riders ages 21 and older with insurance coverage providing at least $10,000 in medical benefits for injuries sustained in a motorcycle crash. Observed helmet use in Florida was reported to have declined from nearly 100 percent in 1998, before the law change, to 53 percent after. The present study compared rates of motorcyclist deaths per crash involvement in Florida for 2001-02 (after the law change) with those for 1998-1999 (before the law change). The motorcyclist death rate increased significantly after the law change, from 30.8 to 38.8 per 1,000 crash involvements. Motorcyclist death rates increased for single- and multiple-vehicle crashes, for male and female operators, and for riders of all ages including those younger than 21. After controlling for gender and age, the likelihood of death given involvement in a motorcycle crash was 25 percent higher than expected after the law change. It is estimated that 117 motorcyclist deaths could have been avoided during 2001-02 if Florida's universal helmet law had remained in place. (Author/publisher)
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