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Health Issues |
Background:
On Wednesday, July 21, Senators
DeWine (R-OH) and Dodd (D-CT) and Representatives Roybal-Allard (D-CA), Wolf
(R-VA), Wamp (R-TN), DeLauro (D-CT), and Osborne (R-NE) introduced the
bi-partisan, bi-cameral “Sober Truth on Preventing Underage Drinking Act,”
or “STOP Underage Drinking Act” (H.R. 4888 in the House and S. 2718 in the
Senate). Inspired by the National Academy of Sciences Institute of
Medicine’s September 2003 recommendations to Congress for a national
strategy to prevent and reduce underage drinking
(“Reducing Underage
Drinking: A Collective Responsibility”), the bill represents a long-overdue
acknowledgement of the need to begin addressing the many harms related to
underage drinking.
What the “STOP Underage Drinking Act”
Does:
The
companion House and Senate bills include four areas of policy development.
1)
Improved Federal Coordination and Leadership on Underage Drinking
Prevention.
The bill provides $2 million for a committee of federal agencies focused
on underage drinking. Chaired by the Secretary of Health and Human
Services, the committee is charged with guiding policy and program
development across the federal government with respect to underage
drinking. The committee will also produce two reports – an annual report
to Congress on progress at the federal level and a report card to evaluate
efforts at the state level. The annual report to Congress will summarize:
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All
programs and policies of federal agencies designed to prevent underage
drinking.
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The extent of progress in reducing underage drinking nationally.
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Patterns
and consequences of underage drinking.
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Measures
of the availability of alcohol to underage populations and of the
exposure of this population to messages regarding alcohol in advertising
and entertainment media.
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Findings
derived from the additional research on underage drinking called for by
the bill, such as brand preferences of underage drinkers and their
exposure to alcohol advertising.
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Evidence-based best practices to both prevent underage drinking and
provide treatment services to those youth who need them.
The annual “report card” will assess the performance of each state in
enacting and enforcing laws, regulations, and programs to prevent and
reduce underage drinking. The inter-agency committee, in consultation with
public health, consumer, and alcoholic beverage industry groups, will
create measures to evaluate state progress in adopting and implementing
programs that can reduce underage drinking (such as strict enforcement of
minimum drinking age laws, compliance checks of alcohol retail outlets,
levels of investment of State funds in underage drinking prevention and
other programs).
2)
Beginnings of a National Media Campaign to Prevent Underage Drinking.
The bill provides for the Secretary of Health and Human Services to
continue funding and overseeing the production, broadcasting, and
evaluation of the Ad Council’s adult-oriented public service media
campaign. The bill provides $1 million for each of the fiscal years 2005
and 2006. It also requires the Secretary to provide an annual report to
Congress detailing the progress and effectiveness of the campaign as
well as the need for and likely effectiveness of an expanded
adult-oriented media campaign, and the feasibility and likely
effectiveness of a national youth-focused media campaign to combat
underage drinking.
3)
Funding for Community and Campus Efforts to Prevent Underage Drinking.
The bill provides $5 million in FY 2005 for the award of “enhancement
grants” of up to $50,000 for organizations to design, test, evaluate, and
disseminate strategies to maximize the effectiveness of community-wide
approaches to underage drinking. The bill further provides $5 million in
FY 2005 for the Secretary of Education to award grants to enable eligible
entities to reduce the rate of underage alcohol use, binge drinking, and
drug use among college and university students.
4)
Additional Research and Data Collection on Underage Drinking.
The act provides $6 million to the Secretary of Health and Human
Services to collect data on, and conduct or support research on,
underage drinking with respect to the following:
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The short and long-range impact of alcohol use and abuse upon adolescent
brain development.
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Community-based strategies to prevent underage drinking.
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Improved
knowledge of the scope of the underage drinking problem and progress in
preventing
and treating underage drinking.
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More precise information than is currently collected on the type and
quantity of alcoholic
beverages consumed by underage
drinkers as well as information on brand preferences of these drinkers
and their exposure to alcohol advertising.
Why It's Needed:
Alcohol is
the leading drug problem among young people in the United States and
underage drinking contributes to the deaths of 6.5 times more young people
than all illicit drugs combined. The public health, safety, consumer
protection, education, child and family welfare, and faith communities have
fought for years to elevate underage drinking on the national public policy
agenda. This bill represents an important first step in developing an
effective national response to the devastating public health and safety
problem of underage drinking.
Take Action:
Call, fax, or
e-mail your Senators and Representative today and urge him/her to co-sponsor
S. 2718 (Senate) and companion bill H.R. 4888 (House).
Here’s
how to do it:.
Phoneà
1) Call your U.S.
Representative’s
Washington office. (If you don’t have the number, call
202-224-3121 and the Capitol Switchboard will connect you).
2) Ask to speak with the staff
member who handles alcohol and/or health issues.
3)
Whether
you speak with a staffer or leave a message on his/her voice mail, your
message is the same. Identify yourself as a constituent and ask that the
Senator or Representative co-sponsor S. 2718 (Senate) and companion bill
H.R. 4888 (House).
E-mail or Faxà
Some Members have e-mail addresses, while others prefer that you send your
comments via their web site. Fax numbers are generally made public. To look
up your Representative’s contact info,
click here.
Sample message:
I
urge Senator/Representative [Smith] to co-sponsor the bi-partisan STOP
Underage Drinking Prevention Act, recently introduced by Senators DeWine and
Dodd (S.2718) and by Representatives Roybal-Allard, Wolf, DeLauro, Wamp, and
Osborne (H.R 4888). Alcohol plays a substantial role in the top three
causes of teen death (traffic crashes, murder, and suicide) and costs the
nation an estimated $53 billion per year. Despite its massive toll in
dollars and lives, and while illicit drugs and tobacco youth prevention
receive considerable attention and support, underage drinking prevention has
consistently been neglected. Please support this modest bill and help
promote
real progress on this serious youth health and safety issue. I look forward
to hearing your response and thank you for your consideration.
July 26, 2004
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Related Links:
CSPI Press Release
Dewine/Dodd Press Release
Read the bill
Email this link
For more information, please
contact:
Kim Hennemeyer, Manager
of Federal Relations, or
Amy Gotwals, Manager of
Grassroots Advocacy
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