National Safety Summit Participants Set Future Legislative Agenda, Unveil New Technologies, Commit to Comprehensive Community-Based Campaigns for Motor Vehicle Occupant Safety.

WASHINGTON -- National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB), National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), Centers for Disease Control (CDC), Former Secretary of Transportation Among Those Who Collaborate with National Safety Advocates and Researchers

After four and one half years of groundbreaking research and educational outreach intended to reduce disparities in seat belt use among African American motorists, the Meharry-State Farm Alliance sponsored the National Safety Summit in Washington, D.C. It brought together federal safety officials and the nation's leading safety experts to unveil a nationally-focused, community-based model for reducing disparities among diverse populations. The Meharry-State Farm Alliance is a collaboration of the nation's largest private, independent historically black academic health center and the nation's largest automobile insurer.

During the Summit, Mark Rosenker, acting chairman of the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB), described safety innovations already widely used in the aviation industry that will "someday be in all cars in our country; but that will take a long time. The result will be a significant reduction in the number of ground traffic crashes every year." Rosenker continued, "In the meantime, all of us need to work for comprehensive highway safety laws that will raise seat belt use, improve teen driving, ensure children are appropriately restrained, and prevent impaired driving."

Presenters at the National Safety Summit included Nicole Nason, the new administrator of NHTSA; Rodney Slater, former U.S. Secretary of Transportation; Rosenker of NTSB; Ileana Arias, director of the National Center for Injury Prevention and Control at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention; and Glynn Birch, national president of Mothers Against Drunk Driving (MADD).

A variety of statistics, proposals, and technological advances were revealed during the two-day event, designed to drive the nation's motor vehicle safety agenda during the next decade. Among the research and developments presented at the National Safety Summit:

KEY STATISTICS

--Automobile crashes are a leading cause of death among African Americans

--Automobile crashes are the leading cause of death among children, adolescents and young adults aged 4-34

--African American adolescents have a higher rate of non-seat belt use than white or Hispanic populations

--Motor vehicle crashes account for more than 42,000 deaths per year and $150 billion in expenses annually. In the early 70's, more than 55,000 people were killed each year on America's highways -- the total amount of all Americans who died in the Vietnam War 

--There are 117 deaths on our nation's highways every day (five per hour) as a result of motor vehicle crashes

--Seat belt studies reveal a wide range of usage rates, with Hawaii and Washington leading the nation as 95 percent of all motorists wear seat belts. The nation's lowest seat belt compliance rates are in Mississippi, with a 61 percent rate of compliance and Massachusetts with a 65% rate

--18 percent of all Americans do not wear seat belts

--Obese Americans, men, pick-up truck drivers, Hispanics, and American Indians lead other diverse populations that are less likely to wear seat belts

--More than 36 percent of Hispanic adolescents report having been a passenger in a vehicle with a driver who had been drinking

"The Meharry-State Farm Alliance plays a vital role in research and advocacy for motor vehicle occupant safety," said Judie Stone, President of Advocates for Highway and Auto Safety. "So much more needs to be done and the Summit is providing a road map."

PROMISING NEW SAFETY TECHNOLOGIES

--Test cars currently exist that automatically stop a vehicle once it encounters a road obstruction without a motorist's intervention

--Sensors that detect abrupt lane changes into the path of an oncoming vehicle or the shoulder of the roadway will automatically adjust the vehicle

--Electronic stability control for motor vehicles that could potentially prevent more than 10,000 deaths per year

--Adaptive cruise control, allowing vehicles to automatically sense traffic patterns and adjust speed without a motorist's intervention, is currently being tested

"Today, we have heard about the challenge of low seat belt use rates by African Americans," said Chairman Rosenker of the National Transportation Safety Board. "The NTSB strongly endorses the efforts of the Meharry-State Farm Alliance to increase seat belt use among all Americans, and especially among minority Americans. The fact remains, however, that crashes don't discriminate. That's why future safety technology is so important."

LEGISLATIVE ISSUES

--Primary seat belt legislation passed in more than 25 states is statistically proven to increase seat belt usage in those states

--Graduated Driver License (GDL) laws should be improved in states that have adopted them and passed in those states that don't have such a law

--Booster seat laws should be passed in all states to cover youth up to age eight

--Despite widespread perceptions to the contrary, racial profiling is not statistically proven to increase due to the passage of primary seat belt legislation

--Increased funding for seat belt educational outreach programs are critical to future legislative efforts

COMMUNITY-BASED SAFETY MODEL

--A Developmental / Ecological approach is recommended for states to implement safety programs

--Provide more culturally sensitive and linguistically appropriate educational material for diverse populations

--Focus on community demographics, including poverty, race, and ethnicity

--Solutions must be tailored to fit cultural, traditional, and social norms in each community

"Certain American Indian populations believe their babies must be wrapped in a certain material when leaving the hospital, so parents would not use car seats," said Dr. Nathan Stinson, director of the National Center for Optimal Health, housed at Meharry Medical College. "To overcome this cultural barrier and provide child safety in vehicles, slip covers are now made for car seats that are made from this material."

The National Safety Summit participants held an open forum for addressing future safety disparities and mapped out individual strategies for future safety approaches. Populations of focus included infants and children; "tweens" and teens; and adults. The Summit participants recommended adapting these strategies using the Developmental / Ecological model.

"In order to prevent what amounts to suicidal behavior when motorists decide not to use their seat belt or properly secure their child in a booster or car seat, we must have national consensus on several fronts," said John H. Britton of the Meharry-State Farm Alliance. "Community coalitions, government funding, continued gathering of responsible data, and media outreach will be the key to saving lives in the future."

About the Meharry-State Farm Alliance

The Meharry-State Farm Alliance is a joint venture of Meharry Medical College, an historically black academic health center in Nashville, Tenn., and State Farm, which insures more cars than any other insurer in North America and is the leading U.S. home insurer. State Farm's 17,000 agents and 69,000 employees serve nearly 73 million auto, fire and health policies in the United States and Canada. Established in 2002, the Alliance focuses on research, education and public policy to reduce preventable deaths, injuries, and long-term disabilities from vehicle crashes.

About Meharry

Meharry Medical College is the nation's largest private, independent historically African American institution dedicated solely to educating health science professionals. The College is particularly well known for its uniquely nurturing, highly effective educational programs; growing preeminence in health disparities research; culturally sensitive, evidence-based health services; and significant contribution to the diversity of the nation's health professions workforce. Diverse: Issues in Higher Education's ranking of institutions annually lists Meharry as a leading educator of African Americans with M.D. and D.D.S. degrees and Ph.D. degrees in the biomedical sciences.