Community Safety

Fort Collins, CO — Thirty-three percent of recent high school graduates have ridden in a motor vehicle with an impaired driver, a recently published study from Colorado State University reveals.

Minneapolis — Non-opioid painkillers are as effective as opioids in treating moderate to severe chronic back pain and hip or knee osteoarthritis pain, according to researchers from the Minneapolis Veterans Affairs Health Care System.

Washington — Every nine minutes, a child 6 years old or younger is taken to the emergency room because of an unintentional medicine-related poisoning – and one child dies every 12 days – according to a recent report from Safe Kids Worldwide.

Atlanta – The number of emergency room visits stemming from opioid-related overdoses continues to increase, according to a recent report from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Washington — Pedestrian deaths in the United States have increased faster than all other types of traffic fatalities over the past decade, and now are at a 25-year high, according to a new report from the Governors Highway Safety Association.

Columbus, OH — Parents of teen drivers, take note: Despite state laws being in place, about one-third of teens say they talk on their cellphones and text while behind the wheel, according to a new study from Nationwide Children’s Hospital’s Center for Injury Research and Policy.

Washington — Drowsy driving contributes to about 10 percent of all motor vehicle-related crashes, exceeding federal estimates by nearly eightfold, according to newly released research from the AAA Foundation for Traffic Safety.

Bethesda, MD — Alcohol-related emergency rooms visits surged by more than 60 percent over a recent eight-year period – with women and 45- to 64-year-olds experiencing the largest increases – according to a study from the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism.

Atlanta — Sleep-related deaths among infants could be reduced by more parents following safe sleep practices recommended by the American Academy of Pediatrics, a recent report from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention suggests.

Washington — The National Sleep Foundation is constructing a tool intended to measure sleep satisfaction among the general public.