Injury prevention policy report ranks Arkansas as making progress but more work needed

“The Facts Hurt: A State-By-State Injury Prevention Policy Report”, was released yesterday by the Trust for America’s Health (TFAH) and the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation (RWJF). Based on ten key questions, Arkansas joined 23 other states with a score of five. Each state was scored based on a list of 10 key indicators of injury prevention measures that states can take. According to the report, “states received one point for achieving each indicator and zero for failing to achieve it. Indicators included questions like “Does the state require booster seats?” and “Did the state enact a prescription drug monitoring program?” Zero was the lowest possible score and 10 was the highest. The highest scoring states were California and New York, each scoring 9 out of 10. Montana and Ohio scored the lowest, with 2 out of 10.”

Dr. Paul Halverson, Arkansas Department of Health director and state health officer, said, “This report demonstrates that we are making progress; however, we are anxious to move forward quickly to address pressing issues that impact the lives of our communities and have a direct impact on the quality of life for Arkansans.”

Bill Temple, Arkansas Department of Health branch chief, Injury Prevention, said “Our recent legislation mandating a primary seat belt law and graduated driver’s license are helping to prevent many injuries in our state. However, injuries – including those caused by accidents and violence – are the third leading cause of death nationally, and they are the leading cause of death for Americans between the ages of one and 44. There is more that we can do as a state to secure that 10 out of 10 ranking from the Trust for America’s Health. We are hard at work with our partnering organizations to make this happen.”

Funding for injury prevention for states from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) averages only $0.28 per American – and has dropped 24 percent from fiscal years 2006 to 2010. Only 31 states have full-time injury and violence prevention directors, which limit injury prevention efforts.

10 Questions Addressed in Report with Arkansas’ Response

1. Does the state have a primary seat belt law? YES

2. Does the state require mandatory ignition interlocks for all convicted drunk drivers, even first time offenders? YES

3. Does the state have a universal helmet law requiring helmets for all motorcycle riders? NO

4. Does the state require car seats or booster seats for children to at least the age of eight? NO

5. Does the state requirement bicycle helmets for all children? NO

6. Does the state allow for people in dating relationships to get protection orders? YES

7. Did the state receive an “A” grade in the teen dating violence laws analysis conducted by the Break the Cycle Organization? NO

8. Does the state have a strong youth sports concussion safety law? YES

9. Did the state enact a prescription drug monitoring program? YES

10. Did more than 90 percent of injury discharges from hospitals receive external cause-of-injury coding in the state, which help researchers and health officials track industry trends and evaluate prevention programs? NO

The complete report is available on TFAH’s website at www.healthyamericans.org.

The report found that many injury prevention activities have been scientifically shown to reduce harm and deaths. It also notes that there is a set of emerging new injury threats, including a dramatic, fast rise in prescription drug abuse, concussions in school sports, bullying, crashes from texting while driving and an expected increase in the number in falls as the Baby Boomer generation ages.

Trust for America’s Health is a non-profit, non-partisan organization dedicated to saving lives by protecting the health of every community and working to make disease prevention a national priority. www.healthyamericans.org.