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On New Year’s Day 2009, there were an estimated 1,980 emergency department visits involving underage drinking, compared to 546 such visits on an average day. That accounts for a staggering 263% increase according to the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA). Each year, approximately 5,000 young people under the age of 21 die as a result of underage drinking; this includes about 1,900 deaths from motor vehicle crashes, 1,600 as a result of homicides, 300 from suicide, as well as hundreds from other injuries such as falls, burns, and drowning. (Source: Medical News Today, 12/31/10)

Mandating drunk-driving charges against young drivers with any detectable amount of alcohol in their bodies has had no effect on the number of alcohol-related crashes or fatalities in the states where they have been implemented, according to a new study from a Sam Houston State University economics expert. Economics professor Darren Grant drew his conclusions from an analysis of 30,000 fatalities in nighttime crashes involving drivers under age 21, comparing data from states with zero-tolerance laws to those without such laws. (Source: Join Together, 5/5/09)

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