This policy supersedes Position/Policy Statements: #58 — Impairment at Low Alcohol Concentrations #93 -- 0.08 BAC Standard #100 — Alcohol Impairment Concentrations Impairment from alcohol begins with the first drink. With more knowledge around this fact, people can make safer decisions and reduce crash risk. Therefore, the National Safety Council supports a national education campaign to inform Americans that impairment begins with the first drink. The National Safety Council also supports efforts by states to lower the legal alcohol limit for motor vehicle operators in the United States. Fatal crashes involving alcohol-impaired drivers fell significantly through the 1980s and early 1990s as effective laws were passed and enforced, and strong educational campaigns were executed nationwide. However, progress has stalled. Since then there has been no further reduction in the proportion of deaths in crashes involving alcohol. Drivers at or above the 0.081 legal limit have been involved in one-third of fatal crashes for the past 20 years. To reduce this toll, additional significant efforts are needed. The legal impaired alcohol concentration driving limit in all states is 0.08. However, research shows that for the majority of drivers, driving performance has already deteriorated significantly by the time they reach this level. In order to reduce alcohol-involved crash rates, there is a need to educate the American public about the safety effects of low alcohol concentration levels in order to facilitate culture change. There is some evidence that targeting lower alcohol concentrations also reduces the incidence of driving at higher alcohol concentrations. For the past 20 years, drivers with alcohol concentrations at or above 0.08 have remained involved in one-third of all traffic fatalities in the U.S., which equates to about 10,000 lives lost every year. We saw significant reductions in alcohol-involved crashes in the 1980s with national strategies such as lowering the legal driving limit to 0.08, increasing the minimum legal drinking age to 21, and instituting educational campaigns about drinking and driving. Unfortunately, for decades now, there hasn't been a further reduction in the proportion of crash deaths that involve alcohol, despite our current laws, enforcement, technology and education strategies. One tactic is to lower the national alcohol concentration limit to the level of most other industrialized countries, which is 0.05 or lower. Research states that lowering the national standard from 0.08 to 0.05 could save 538 lives each year There is also evidence that lowering the limit could significantly reduce injury and crashes at high alcohol concentrations. However, the current U.S. culture regarding driving and alcohol is not supportive of lowering driving limits for all adult drivers. And despite drivers’ views of drinking and driving as a very serious threat, more than 1 in 8 drivers admit to driving in the past year when they thought they were close to or over the legal limit. An effort to lower alcohol limits requires societal support, and to change American culture regarding drinking and driving there must be a significant shift in attitudes and beliefs. A strategy grounded in human behaviour theory is needed as a catalyst to change attitudes and beliefs, and ultimately influence widespread culture and behaviour change. Please see the attached supporting pages for an explanation of scientific evidence of low level alcohol impairment, and sources of information. This position statement reflects the opinions of the National Safety Council but not necessarily those of each member organization. (Author/publisher)
Samenvatting