New York and California do the best job of keeping people safe from accidental injuries, according a report just released by the Trust for America’s Health and the Robert Wood Foundation.
The report analyzed how each state’s policies protect people from accidental injuries. Thanks to things like stricter seatbelt laws, bike helmet laws, and tougher regulations on drunk driving, New York and California came out on top. That’s great news for people in those states, since accidental injuries are America’s 5th most common cause of death.
“There are proven, evidence-based strategies that can spare millions of Americans from injuries each year,” Trust executive director Jeff Levi said in a statement. “This report focuses on specific, scientifically supported steps we can take to make it easier for Americans to keep themselves and their families safer.”
The study also analyzed anti-violence laws, sport safety laws, and prescription drug monitoring programs in each state. Both New York and California scored a nine out of 10 on the report’s scientific scale. Maryland, North Carolina, Oregon, Rhode Island and Washington all tied for second place with scores of eight out of 10. Montana and Ohio came in last, with scores of two out of 10.
Among the findings in the report:
– 18 states lack primary seatbelt laws
– 29 states do not require children to wear bike helmets
– 31 states do not require motorcycle riders to wear helmets
– 34 states (and Washington, D.C.) do not require convicted drunk drivers to use an ignition interlock
Just how effective are these laws?
According to the report, the states with tougher policies are saving lives. In New York, the annual accidental injury rate is 37.1 per 100,000 people. In Montana, the rate is much higher — 86.5 per 100,000 people.
“Seatbelts, helmets, drunk driving laws and a range of other strong prevention policies and initiatives are reducing injury rates around the country,” Amber Williams, executive director of the Safe States Alliance, said in a statement. “However, we could dramatically bring down rates of injuries from motor vehicles, assaults, falls, fires and a range of other risks even more if more states adopted, enforced and implemented proven policies.”
As successful as some states have been at reducing injuries, there is always room for improvement. Nationally, about 58 people per every 100,000 die from accidental injuries every year.
“While tremendous progress has been made in preventing and treating injury, it remains a leading cause of death for people of all ages and the number one cause of death for children,” Andrea Gielen, director of the Johns Hopkins Center for Injury Research and Policy, said in a statement. “Texting while driving, the increasing numbers of falls in older adults, domestic violence and the astonishing rise in misuse of prescription drugs mean we need to redouble our efforts to make safety research and policy a national priority.”