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Tuesday, December 9, 2003
Contact: José Alberto Uclés, (202) 493-2977
NHTSA 53-03
NHTSA, Surgeon General Join Partners to Announce National Hispanic Impaired
Driving Prevention Campaign
In its ongoing effort to educate the Latino community about the risks of
drinking and driving, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA)
today launched a campaign emphasizing to Hispanics that “Friends Don’t Let
Friends Drive Drunk.” Joining NHTSA in the campaign are the Surgeon General of
the United States, the National Hispanic Medical Association (NHMA), and the
Latino Council on Alcohol and Tobacco Prevention (LCAT).
According to NHTSA, impaired driving is a public health epidemic, with
Hispanics being at higher risk. Traffic crashes are the leading cause of death
for Hispanics ages 1-34 in the United States. Alcohol-related crashes account
for about half of all Hispanic traffic-related fatalities.
“Unfortunately, Hispanic families are at greater risk of being affected by
a public health problem that is 100 percent preventable,” said NHTSA
Administrator Jeffrey W. Runge, M.D. “This is a threat that requires widespread
attention, and we are committed to raising awareness among Latinos about the
dangers of driving after excessive drinking.”
“My experience as a doctor, police officer and paramedic has shown me that
impaired drivers destroy lives,” said the U.S. Surgeon General, Dr. Richard
Carmona. “We must work together to improve treatment for people who drink
alcohol.”
In 2002, more than 17,000 people were killed in alcohol-related crashes on
the nation’s highways, representing a death every 30 minutes. An estimated
258,000 people were injured in crashes where police reported that alcohol was
present – an average of one person injured approximately every two minutes.
Since 1981, December has been designated by Presidential proclamation as
National Drunk and Drugged Driving Prevention Month (3D Month). Earlier this
month Dr. Runge unveiled a new departmental plan to address impaired driving,
including high visibility traffic enforcement, enhanced support for DWI
prosecution and adjudication, and medical screening and brief intervention of
high-risk populations for alcohol use problems.
New Hispanic Impaired Driving Prevention Campaign Materials in Spanish
unveiled today include:
* The
“Amigos No Dejan que los Amigos Manejen Borrachos” (Friends Don’t Let
Friends Drive Drunk) poster and brochure
* The “El salvar vidas es nuestro trabajo” (To Save Lives is Our Job) U.S.
Surgeon General poster
* The Designated Driver Program Guide
*
Radio PSAs for year-round use (in Merengue, Cumbia and
Rap music) and
*
The National Latino Council on Alcohol and Tobacco Prevention (LCAT) impaired
driving project
In keeping with its commitment to reduce impaired driving crashes and
fatalities among Hispanics, NHTSA has partnered with NHMA to make this
information available to doctors, health clinics and hospitals that serve Latino
communities. Their bilingual physicians in the top five Hispanic markets of Los
Angeles, New York, Miami, Chicago and Houston will be spokespersons during this
campaign to help disseminate the message among the Hispanic community that
“Friends Don’t Let Friends Drive Drunk.”
NHTSA also has partnered with LCAT and the Pacific
Institute for Research and Evaluation (PIRE) to implement a culturally specific
and tailored adaptation of the “You Drink & Drive. You Lose.” campaign. Earlier
this spring, NHTSA chose three communities with both established and growing
Latino populations to serve as demonstration sites for the study. Demonstration
grants were awarded to the Doña Ana County DWI Prevention Coalition in New
Mexico, the Durham Coalition for the Prevention of Impaired Driving in the
Latino Community in North Carolina, and the South Texas Injury Prevention and
Research Center at the University of Texas Health Science Center in San Antonio.
The Surgeon General’s Office is part of the U.S. Department of Health and
Human Services.
For more information on the National Hispanic Impaired Driving Prevention
Campaign, and to order campaign materials, visit
www.stopimpaireddriving.org,
www.nhtsa.dot.gov/multicultural
or www.hhs.gov.
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