TY  - JOUR
PY  - 2015//
TI  - Health care utilization and charges following the enactment of the 2007 graduated drivers licensing law in Massachusetts
JO  - Journal of pediatric surgery
A1  - Sangji, Naveen F.
A1  - Ramly, Elie P.
A1  - Kaafarani, Haytham M. A.
A1  - Seethala, Raghu
A1  - Raybould, Toby
A1  - Camargo, Carlos A.
A1  - Velmahos, George
A1  - Masiakos, Peter T.
A1  - Lee, Jarone
SP  - 1791
EP  - 1796
VL  - 50
IS  - 10
N2  - BACKGROUND: Graduated Drivers Licensing (GDL) programs phase in driving privileges for teenagers. In 2007, Massachusetts implemented a stricter version of the 1998 GDL law, with increased fines and education. This study evaluated the impact of the law on motor vehicle crash (MVC)-related health care utilization and charges. <br><br>METHODS: Massachusetts government and US Census Bureau data were analyzed to compare the rates of MVC-related emergency department (ED) visits and hospital charges before (2002-2006) and after (2007-2011) the 2007 GDL law. Three driver age groups were studied: 16-17 (evaluating the law effect), 18-20 (evaluating the sustainability of the effect), and 25-29 years old (control group). <br><br>RESULTS: MVC-related ED visits per population decreased after the law for all three age groups (16-17: 2326 to 713; 18-20: 2110 to 1304; 25-29: 1694 to 1228; per 100,000, p<0.001), but the decrease was greater amongst teenagers (16-17: -69%; 18-20: -38%) compared to the control group (-27%); p<0.001. MVC-related hospital charges per population also decreased for teenagers but increased for the control group (16-17: $2.70m to $1.45m; 18-20: $3.52m to $2.26m; 25-29: $1.86m to $1.92m; per 100,000, p<0.001). <br><br>CONCLUSIONS: The 2007 GDL law in Massachusetts was associated with significant decreases in MVC-related health care utilization and hospital charges among teenage drivers.<p />  <p>Language: en</p>
LA  - en
SN  - 0022-3468
UR  - http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.jpedsurg.2015.06.004
ID  - ref1
ER  -