OPINIONNew alcohol limit will be a lifesaverA new transportation funding law brings with it an improved national standard for a driver blood alcohol limit.Editorial. Nov. 13, 2000. The number that attracted the most attention in the transportation funding bill signed recently by President Clinton was not its $58 billion price tag. Instead, it was the more humble -- yet potent -- .08. At long last, this nation is further along the way to having a sensible driver's blood alcohol limit in every state. Many states have adopted a .08 blood alcohol limit for drivers, but 31 have not. Financial penalties for noncompliance, built into the transportation bill, are the best way of encouraging lawmakers in those states to adopt the lower limit. The AMA has long supported a reduced blood alcohol limit -- the number on its advocacy wish list is an even more scientifically sound .04 -- as part of a constellation of proposals to make our roads and highways safe from impaired drivers. For example, the AMA also supports aggressive measures against first and multiple offenders -- including license suspension -- paired with alcohol screening and treatment referrals. It is expected that the .08 limit will save 500 lives a year, but there is another more striking number that is also part of this story. Based on the most recent annual statistics, even with that reduction, more than 15,000 Americans will be killed in alcohol-related crashes. That's an intolerable figure; much more needs to be done. Copyright 2000 American Medical Association. All rights reserved.
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