title: Effects of smoke-free laws on alcohol-related car crashes in California and New York: time series analyses from 1982 to 2008.
abstract: We examined effects of New York and California's statewide smoke-free restaurant and bar policies on alcohol-related car crash fatalities. We used an interrupted time-series design from 1982 to 2008, with 312 monthly observations, to examine the effect of each state's law on single-vehicle-nighttime crashes and crashes involving a driver with a blood alcohol concentration of 0.08 grams per deciliter or greater. Implementation of New York and California's statewide smoke-free policies was not associated with alcohol-related car crash fatalities. Additionally, analyses showed no effect of New York's smoke-free policy on alcohol-related car crash fatalities in communities along the Pennsylvania-New York border. Statewide smoke-free restaurant and bar laws do not appear to affect rates of alcohol-related car crashes.
authors.affiliation: College of Medicine, Florida State University, Tallahassee, FL 32306, USA. debra.bernat@med.fsu.edu
authors.forename: Debra H
authors.initials: DH
authors.lastname: Bernat
authors.forename: Mildred
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Maldonado-Molina
authors.forename: Andrew
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Hyland
authors.forename: Alexander C
authors.initials: AC
authors.lastname: Wagenaar
mesh_terms: D000063:Accidents, Traffic / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D000428:Alcohol Drinking; D001334:Automobile Driving; D002140:California; D000431:Ethanol / Q000097:blood; D006801:Humans; D015233:Models, Statistical; D009518:New York; D010414:Pennsylvania; D012147:Restaurants / Q000331:legislation & jurisprudence*; D061845:Smoke-Free Policy / Q000331:legislation & jurisprudence*
chemical_list: D000431:Ethanol