Defending the Minimum Legal Drinking Age Law

One of the obstacles that underage drinking prevention coalitions often come up against is the argument that the drinking age should be lowered. It is often difficult to convince people both outside and inside the coalition that keeping the drinking age at 21 is a sound idea. HCTC has put together this packet of information for parents, coalition members and community members to use to defend the Minimum Legal Drinking Age (MLDA-21) Law. Information in this packet was gathered from leading researchers on underage drinking. Please feel free to distribute. 

21 MLDA History

History speaks for itself and the history of the 21 minimum drinking age law is no exception. As one of the nation’s most scrutinized laws, there is wealth of data on the law’s effectiveness and why it works. And it is the history of that law that best illustrates that fact. For almost 40 years, most states voluntarily set their minimum drinking age law at 21. But at the height of the Vietnam War in the early 1970s, 29 states began lowering their drinking age to more closely align with the newly reduced military enlistment and voting age. And of those 29 states, no uniformity in age limits—drinking ages varied from 18 to 20 and sometimes even varied based on the type of alcohol being consumed (e.g. 18 for beer, 20 for liquor).

The results of this “natural experiment” were fairly immediate and hard to miss: The decrease in the drinking age brought about an increase in alcohol traffic fatalities and injuries. So much so that, by 1983, 16 states voluntarily raised their drinking age back to 21—a move that brought about an immediate decrease in drinking and driving traffic fatalities incidents. Some states, however, kept a lower drinking age. This created a patchwork of states with varied drinking ages that led to what was known as “blood borders”. They were called blood borders because teens would drive across state lines, drink and then drive back home across state lines killing and injuring themselves and others.

Around this time, the nation began taking a firm stance on the issue of drunk driving. And because it was apparent that a 21 drinking age law reduced alcohol-related fatalities and injuries, there was a groundswell to help decrease drunk driving deaths and injuries by raising the minimum drinking age to 21. President Ronald Reagan responded to growing evidence that a 21 drinking age law would save lives. On July 17, 1984, President Reagan signed into law the Uniform Drinking Age Act mandating all states to adopt 21 as the legal drinking age within five years. By 1988, all states had set 21 as the minimum drinking age, which is where it should remain.

Since that time, the 21 minimum drinking age law has saved about 900 lives per year as estimated by the National Traffic Highway Administration (NHTSA). In short, there are more than 25,000 people alive today since all states adopted the law in 1988. In fact, the 21 minimum drinking age law has been heralded as one of the most effective public safety laws ever passed. It is also one of the nation’s most examined laws with countless studies that been conducted to measure the law’s effectiveness—all of which have come to the same conclusion: the law saves lives. Youth drinking rates have also declined since the 21 age law went into effect. The 2006 Monitoring the Future study shows declining alcohol consumption among American youth, although alcohol use continues to be widespread among today's youth. A look at all of the research on the minimum drinking age from 1960 to 2000 found that the bulk of the evidence shows that 21 minimum drinking age laws decrease underage consumption of alcohol. Even over the last 15 years, after the passage of the 21 minimum drinking age laws, the percentage of 8th, 10th, and 12th graders who drank alcohol in the past year decreased 38 percent, 23 percent and 14 percent respectively.

Facts on Underage Drinking

Excessive alcohol consumption contributes to more than 4,600 deaths among underage youth in the United States each year.

Underage drinking is strongly associated with health and social problems among youth including alcohol-impaired driving, physical fighting, poor school performance, and unsafe sexual activity.

500,000 18 to 24-year-old college students suffer injuries each year related to drinking and about 1,700 die in such accidents.

More 18 year-olds die in low BAC (between .01 and .09 BAC) crashes than any other age.

In 2006, about 10.8 million young people aged 12 to 20 (28.3 percent) reported drinking alcohol in the past month. Approximately 7.2 million (19.0 percent) were binge drinkers and 2.4 million (6.2 percent) were heavy drinkers. These numbers have essentially stayed the same since 2002.

In 2008 in Livingston County 22% of youth in grades 6-12^th reported drinking alcohol in the past month. 15 Percent were binge drinkers.

Traffic crashes are the number one killer of teens and 28 percent of fatal traffic crashes involving teen drivers are alcohol-related.

Alcohol is the number one youth drug problem in America and more young people die from alcohol-related incidents than from all other illicit drugs combined

Parents are the most common supplier of alcohol to those under 21 and parents are the primary influencer of teens.

Alcohol use during the teen years, particularly when such use is heavy enough to result in withdrawal symptoms upon cessation of drinking, negatively impacts memory and attention, abilities necessary for negotiating the tasks of adolescence and successfully making the transition into adulthood.

While a myth exists that European teens have less alcohol-related problems than American teens, even though they start drinking earlier, studies have found that that is not the case. In most European countries, young people have higher intoxication rates than their U.S. counterparts, and a greater percentage of young people in a majority of European countries report binge drinking at higher rates than U.S. youths.

Underage drinking costs American taxpayers approximately $61.9 billion annually. The cost to New York is 3.2 billion annually.

The Consequences of Underage Drinking

A person’s brain does not stop developing until his or her early to mid-20s. During this development, alcohol negatively affects all parts of the brain, including coordination, motional control, thinking, decision-making, hand-eye movement, speech and memory.

Adolescent drinkers perform worse in school, are more likely to fall behind and have an increased risk of social problems, depression, suicidal thoughts and violence.

Those who start drinking before age 15 were 12 times more likely to be unintentionally injured while under the influence of alcohol, 7 times more likely to be in a motor vehicle crash after drinking and 10 times more likely to have been in a physical fight after drinking.

Among drinkers, those who had their first drink before the age of 13 were twice as likely to have unplanned sex, and more than twice as likely to have unprotected sex.

Individuals who began drinking in their early teens are not only at greater risk for developing alcoholism sometime in their lives, they are also at greater risk for developing alcoholism more quickly and at younger ages, especially chronic, relapsing alcoholism

The Effect of MLDA-21

Proven to be one of the most effective impaired driving deterrents, resulting in nearly 25,000 lives saved since 1982.

Caused a 63% decline in alcohol-related crash fatalities among young drivers since 1982

Decreased youth drinking: In 1983, 88% of high school seniors reported alcohol use in the past year and 41% reported binge drinking. By 1997, alcohol use by seniors had dropped to 75% and the percentage of binge drinkers had fallen to 31%.

Resulted in lower levels of alcohol consumption among young adults age 21 years and older as well as those less than age 21 years.

Lowered death rates for suicide and unintentional non-traffic injuries among persons under 21.

In 2005, 2,035 youth ages 15 to 20 were killed in alcohol-related traffic crashes, translating to 33 percent of all traffic fatalities in that age group.

Research indicates that when the minimum legal drinking age is 21, people under age 21 drink less overall and continue to do so through their early twenties. When the drinking age has been lowered, injury and death rates significantly increase.

The Center for Disease Control (CDC) has reviewed nearly 50 peer-reviewed studies of countries that had changed their drinking age and found that lowering the minimum drinking age to 18 increases fatalities by 10 percent.

If you’re Old Enough to Fight for Our Country…..

It doesn’t necessarily follow that you are also old enough to drink. Ages of initiation vary. One can vote at 18, drink at 21, rent a car at 25, and run for president at 35. These ages take into account the requirements, risks, and benefits of each act. U.S. Code requires military installation commanders to adopt the same drinking age as the state in which the military base is located. If the base is located within 50 miles of Canada or Mexico, the commander may adopt a lower drinking age for military personnel on base. Although Fort Bliss, TX, could have an 18 MLDA, it raised it’s MLDA to 21 in May 2008. Citing increasing numbers of alcohol-related incidents, including alcohol poisonings, assaults and DWIs, Commander Major General Howard B. Bromberg said the change was necessary to ensure the safety of their soldiers, their families, and the community. These steps were needed because more than half of all active duty military personnel report binge drinking in the past month, and young adult service members exposed to combat are at a significantly greater risk for binge drinking than older service members. 

Myths and Facts

Myth:The law only makes youth want to drink because it’s a “forbidden fruit.” If drinking alcohol was legal at 18, it wouldn’t be a big deal and those under 21 would be less likely to drink.

Fact:When the “forbidden fruit” is no longer forbidden, youth simply drink more. In states where the drinking age was 18, those under 21 drank more than youth in states where the minimum drinking age was 21 and they continued to drink more as adults in their early 20s. In states where the drinking age was 21, teenagers drank less than youth in states where the minimum drinking age was 21 and continued to drink less through their early 20s.

But drinking more is not the only issue.

Because alcohol impairs decision-making capabilities, young people who drink are more likely to engage in risk-taking behavior. And this risky behavior can lead to unintentional deaths and injuries associated with driving or engaging in other activities that lead to homicide and violence, suicide attempts, sexual assault, risky sexual behavior, and vandalism and property damage. And, youth who started drinking before age 15, compared to those who waited until they were 21, were 12 times more likely to be unintentionally injured while under the influence of alcohol, 7 times more likely to be in a motor vehicle crash after drinking, and 10 times more likely to have been in a physical fight after drinking. Drinking at earlier ages is also associated with higher rates of drinking later in life. In fact, 40 percent of those who started drinking before 15 meet criteria for alcohol dependence at some time in their lives.

Myth:If I’m old enough to go to war, I should be old enough to drink.

Fact:Many rights have different ages of initiation. You can get a hunting license at age 12, drive at 16, vote and serve in the military at 18, serve in the U.S. House of Representatives at 25, and serve as the U.S. President at 35. Other regulated rights include the sale and use of tobacco, and legal consent for sexual intercourse and marriage. Vendors, such as car rental facilities and hotels, also have set the minimum age for a person to use their services—25-years-old to rent a car and 21-years-old to rent a hotel room. And these minimum ages are set for a reason. In the case of alcohol, 21 is the minimum age because a person’s brain does not stop developing until his or her early to mid-20s. Drinking alcohol while the brain is still developing can lead to long-lasting deficits in cognitive abilities, including learning and memory. Alcohol use by those under 21 is also related to numerous health problems including injuries and death resulting from alcohol poisoning, car crashes, suicide, homicide, assaults, drowning and recreational mishaps. Not to mention that the early onset of drinking by youth significantly increases the risk of future health problems such as addiction.

Myth:Europeans let their kids drink at an early age, yet they do not have the alcohol-related problems we do.

Fact:This popular myth, which is referred to as the “European Myth”, was dispelled by the facts of the 2003 European School Survey Project on Alcohol and Other Drugs and the United States 2003 Monitoring the Future report. What was discovered is that in most European countries, young people have higher intoxication rates than in the United States, and less than a quarter had lower or equivalent rates to the United States. Also, a greater percentage of young people in a majority of European countries report binge drinking at higher rates then compared to their US counterparts. And that some European youth have higher rates of alcohol-related problems because of their heavy drinking. Perhaps the best example of fact versus myth when it comes to the “European Myth” is a look at what happened in New Zealand. In 1999, New Zealand lowered its purchase age from 20 to 18. Not only did drunk driving crashes increase, but youth started to drink earlier, binge drinking escalated, and in the 12 months following the decrease in legal drinking age, there was a 50 percent increase in intoxicated 18- and 19-year-old patients at the Auckland Hospital emergency room.

Clearly, Europe has serious issues with youth alcohol use.

Myth:Drinking is just a phase all kids go through; they’ll grow out of it.

Fact: Many don’t grow out of it. Those who start drinking before they’re 21 are more likely to drink more later in life versus those who do not drink until they are 21. And, they continue this pattern through their 20s.

And while we wait for them to “grow out of it”, they’re:

Dying in car crashes (an average of eight American youth under age 21 die every day in alcohol-related crashes);

Getting hurt in accidents such as falls, burns, and drowning;

Contracting sexually transmitted diseases;

Becoming teenage parents;

Committing crimes (physical assault, sexual assault, vandalism, robbery, theft, homicide, etc.);

Becoming physical and sexual assault victims; and

Costing society a considerable amount of money.

Myth:Lowering the drinking age will encourage young people to be responsible consumers and drink under supervision at bars (or on college campuses) rather than at uncontrolled, private parties.

Fact: While many bars serve alcohol legally and responsibly, many bars encourage irresponsible drinking with happy hours, two-for-one specials and bar crawls. Many also serve obviously intoxicated patrons. On college campuses, fraternity and sorority members drink more frequently than their peers and accept high levels of alcohol consumption and associated problems as “normal”. Youth drink with the goal to get drunk. They are not “wired” in the brain to asses risk and to be responsible when it comes to risky behavior. There is no class or situation that will prompt a teen to drink responsibly when alcohol flows freely.

Myth:Lower rates of alcohol-related crashes among 19- to 20-year-olds aren't related to the age 21 policies, but rather they're related to increased drinking-driving education efforts, tougher enforcement, and tougher drunk-driving penalties.

Fact:When the age 21 restriction was initiated, alcohol-involved highway crashes declined immediately (i.e., starting the next month) among the 18- to 20-year-old population. Careful research has shown the decline was not due to DUI enforcement and tougher DUI penalties, but is a direct result of the legal drinking age. Studies have also shown that education alone is not effective in reducing youth drinking. Achieving long-term reductions in youth drinking problems requires an environmental change so that alcohol is less accessible to teens.

Information in this Packet was Adapted from the Following Sources:

CADCA (Community Anti-Drug Coalitions of America)

MADD (Mothers Against Drunk Driving)

PIRE (Pacific Institute for Research and Evaluation)

For More information on MLDA-21 please Visit:

http://why21.org/

http://www.madd.org/Media-Center/Media-Center/Media-Library/Press-Kits/Press-Kits/Support-for-21-Minimum-Drinking-Age-Law.aspx

http://www.cadca.org/policyadvocacy/priorities/support-21

For More Information on HCTC (Healthy Communities that Care) Contact: Rachel Pena, 585-748-5146, r.pena17@yahoo.com

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