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NREPP SAMHSA'S National Registry of Evidence-based Programs and Practices
IMPORTANT LEGACY NOTICE: Legacy Programs have not been reviewed by the current National Registry of Evidence-based Programs and Practices (NREPP). The programs in this database were reviewed only under the previous National Registry of Effective Prevention Programs system. This section is intended to be used for historical reference only. If you would like more information about a program listed here, please contact the program developer directly. The program developer of each Legacy Program listed here agreed to post program information on this site.

Legal Blood Alcohol Level (Effects of Maine's .05% Limit)

Brief Program Description

The objective of this study was to determine whether a Maine law lowering the legal blood alcohol limit (BAL) from 0.10 percent to 0.05 percent for people already convicted of driving while intoxicated (DWI) reduced this group's involvement in fatal vehicle crashes.

Researchers collected and analyzed data on fatal crashes involving drivers with prior DWI convictions for 6-year periods before and after enactment of the lower BAL law, comparing Maine and the other five New England States pre- to post-law, in terms of changes in the proportions of:

Study results showed dramatic adjusted percentage declines-48 percent and 51 percent, respectively-in fatal crashes involving Maine drivers with prior DWI convictions and those with DWI convictions and illegally elevated BALs, compared to the other New England States. Maine also experience a moderate decline in the proportion of nonalcohol-involved fatal crashes while throughout the rest of New England, these crashes increased 60 percent.

Program Development Support

The Boston University School of Public Health, Social and Behavioral Sciences Department provided development support under grant R01-AA-10171 from the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, and funding from Join Together, a program of the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation.

Contact Information

For indepth information on this program, please use the contact listed below.

Program Developer

Ralph Hingson, Sc.D.
Director
Division of Epidemiology and Prevention Research
National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism
5635 Fishers Lane
Room 2077
Bethesda, MD 20892-1705
Phone: (301) 443-1274
Fax: (301) 443-7043
Email: rhingson@mail.nih.gov

In July 2002, this program was designated as an Effective Program under SAMHSA's previous National Registry of Effective Prevention Programs system.