Home > Promising Practices > CDC COMMUNITY GUIDE: Reducing Alcohol-Impaired Driving: Maintaining Current Minimum Legal Drinking Age (MLDA) Laws

CDC COMMUNITY GUIDE: Reducing Alcohol-Impaired Driving: Maintaining Current Minimum Legal Drinking Age (MLDA) Laws

CDC

An Evidence-Based Practice

Description

Minimum Legal Drinking Age (MLDA) laws specify an age below which the purchase or public consumption of alcoholic beverages is illegal. In the United States, the age in all states is currently 21 years.

The Community Preventive Services Task Force recommends maintaining current minimum legal drinking age laws based on strong evidence of their effectiveness in reducing alcohol-related crashes and associated injuries among 18- to 20-year-old drivers.

Results / Accomplishments

Results from the Systematic Reviews:
Thirty-three studies qualified for the systematic review.

• Most of the studies assessed the effects of changes in the MLDA from ages 18 to 21 or vice versa.
- Effects of raising the MLDA: crash-related outcomes decreased by median of 16% (14 studies; 1 study evaluating fatal crashes among 16-17 year olds was not included in the summary effect measures)
- Effects of lowering the MLDA: crash-related outcomes increased by median of 10% (9 studies)
- Estimated effect of raising the MLDA by 3 years (from 18 to 21) from regression-based studies: crash-related outcomes decreased by a median of 12% (9 studies)
• Effects were stable over follow-up times ranging from 7 to 108 months.

About this Promising Practice

Primary Contact
The Community Guide
1600 Clifton Rd, NE
MS E69
Atlanta, GA 30329
(404) 498-1827
communityguide@cdc.gov
https://www.thecommunityguide.org/
Topics
Health / Prevention & Safety
Health / Alcohol & Drug Use
Community / Governance
Source
Community Guide Branch Epidemiology and Analysis Program Office, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
Location
USA
For more details
https://www.thecommunityguide.org/findings/motor-v...
Target Audience
Adults

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An Evidence-Based Practice meets the following HCI criteria:

  1. The program description includes at a minimum: the sponsoring organization, program goals, program implementation steps, and outcomes that have demonstrated program success in achieving the program goal in one or more localities.
  2. The results from an evaluation of the program include quantitative measures showing improvement in the outcome(s) of interest after the implementation of the program (i.e. increase in smoking cessation, not just the delivery of a smoking cessation program). The outcome measure(s) is/are compared at relevant time periods before and after the intervention or program implementation. Alternatively, the evaluation study compares the outcome(s) between an intervention group and an appropriate control group.
  3. The study is of peer-review quality and presents numbers in a scientific manner; measurements of precision and reliability are included (e.g. confidence intervals, standard errors), results from statistical tests show a significant difference or change in the outcome measure(s), and relevant point estimates and p-values are presented. Note: if the results from an evaluation of a program are presented in a scientific manner and the outcome measure is improved compared to the baseline measurement or the control group but the difference is not statistically significant, the practice is classified as effective and not evidence-based.