title: Advocacy for booster seat legislation in Florida: a lesson in politics and policy formation.
abstract: MVCs are a major contributor to child injury and death. Infant restraint seats and child booster seats have been shown to reduce the odds of severe injury or death when used correctly. While all states have mandated the use of these restraint systems, the age at which a child can be legally restrained using an adult seat belt varies from state to state. Efforts to strengthen Florida's weak child restraint laws have failed for more than a decade; in the 2014 legislative session, advocates succeeded in raising the state's age requirement from 3 years to 5  years. While many factors contributed to this year's success, some key elements included efficient communication of supporting data, a strong and broad advocacy network and the leveraging of election year political rivalries. Efforts to further strengthen the law will continue into future legislative sessions.
authors.affiliation: Department of Health Policy and Management, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, Baltimore, Maryland, USA.
authors.forename: R Sterling
authors.initials: RS
authors.lastname: Haring
authors.affiliation: Department of Health Policy and Management, Johns Hopkins Center for Injury Research and Policy, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, Baltimore, Maryland, USA.
authors.forename: Shannon
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Frattaroli
authors.affiliation: Surgery Department, Johns Hopkins Center for Surgical Trials and Outcomes Research, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, Maryland, USA.
authors.forename: Eric B
authors.initials: EB
authors.lastname: Schneider
authors.affiliation: Junior Leagues of Florida, State Political Action Committee, Gainesville, Florida, USA.
authors.forename: M Becker
authors.initials: MB
authors.lastname: Holland
authors.affiliation: Department of Health Policy and Management, Johns Hopkins Center for Injury Research and Policy, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, Baltimore, Maryland, USA.
authors.forename: Jon S
authors.initials: JS
authors.lastname: Vernick
mesh_terms: D000063:Accidents, Traffic / Q000517:prevention & control*; D001334:Automobile Driving / Q000331:legislation & jurisprudence*; D002648:Child; D057207:Child Restraint Systems; D002675:Child, Preschool; D005260:Female; D005431:Florida; D006801:Humans; D007223:Infant; D008297:Male; D011050:Policy Making; D011057:Politics; D012449:Safety / Q000331:legislation & jurisprudence; D014947:Wounds and Injuries / Q000517:prevention & control*