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U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Office of Disease Prevention and Health Promotion

Reduce the proportion of motor vehicle crash deaths that involve a drunk driver — SU‑11 Data Methodology and Measurement

On this page:  About the National Data  |  Methodology  |  History

About the National Data

Data

Data Source:  Fatality Analysis Reporting System (FARS), DOT/NHTSA

Baseline: 29.0 percent of motor vehicle crash deaths involved a driver with a BAC of 0.08 g/dL or higher in 2017

Target: 28.3 percent

Numerator
Number of alcohol-impaired-driving fatalities as estimated from FARS.
Denominator
Number of motor vehicle traffic fatalities reported in FARS.
Target-setting method
Minimal statistical significance
Target-setting method details
Minimal statistical significance, assuming the same standard error for the target as for the baseline.
Target-setting method justification
Trend data were evaluated for this objective, but it was not possible to project a target because the trend line was relatively flat. The standard error was used to calculate a target based on minimal statistical significance, assuming the same standard error for the target as for the baseline. This method was used because drunk-driving fatalities have hit a plateau since around 1997. Minimum statistical significant decrease from the baseline was an ambitious yet achievable level of improvement.

Methodology

Methodology notes

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) defines a fatal crash as alcohol-impaired driving if a driver involved in the crash has a measurable or estimated blood alcohol concentration (BAC) of 0.08 g/dL or above. Thus, all fatalities that occur in a crash involving an alcohol-impaired driver are called alcohol-impaired-driving fatalities. BAC is measured as a percentage by weight of alcohol in the blood (expressed as grams per deciliter). An elevated BAC level (0.08 g/dL and higher) indicates that enough alcohol was consumed by the person tested to impair normal functions. Only deaths that occur within 30 days of the motor vehicle crash are included (less than 2 percent of the total number of deaths occur after 30 days). FARS data are obtained solely from a State's existing documents, including police crash reports, death certificates (coded to ICD-10 V30-V39 [.4-.9], V40-V49 [.4-.9], V50-V59 [.4-.9], V60-V69 [.4-.9], V70-V79 [.4-.9], V81.1, V82.1, V83-V86 [.0-.3], V20-V28 [.3-.9]. V29 [.4-.9], V12-V14 [.3-.9], V19 [.4-.6], V02-V04 [.1, .9], V09.2, V80 [.3-.5], V87 [.0-.8], V89.2), vehicle registration files, and hospital medical reports.

History

Comparable HP2020 objective
Modified, which includes core objectives that are continuing from Healthy People 2020 but underwent a change in measurement.
Changes between HP2020 and HP2030
This objective differs from Healthy People 2020 objective SA-17 in that SA-17 tracked deaths involving an alcohol-impaired driver or nonmotorist per total vehicle miles traveled, while this objective tracks motor vehicle deaths involving alcohol-impaired drivers.