The Wall Street Journal recently reported that the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration has begun its annual three-week campaign, “Drive Sober or Get Pulled Over,” aiming to remind people—as they descend into Labor Day weekend—about the dangers of drinking and driving.
Four Million People Can Be Wrong
While this may seem like a cliché or futile effort, the US has actually made major progress in bringing down the number of drinking and driving arrests in the last 12 years. But with roughly 10,000 people losing their lives to DUI-related accidents each year, there is still a lot of work to be done. In fact, this post in Yibada pointed to a recent survey by the CDC that showed more than four million adults admitted to drinking and driving on occasion. And if only 13% of the population driving around without full use of their faculties seems sort of reasonable to you, remember this only includes people over 18 and those willing to admit to it.
Young, Dumb and Full of Rum
When I was 17 years old, I got my first car; a 1984 Chevy Citation in faded maroon. I bought it from a neighbor’s son for $500 and the night I picked it up, I drove straight to my friend Denise’s house to drink and get high. I wasn’t being intentionally careless; it just never occurred to me that owning a car might interfere with my nightly summer ritual of getting completely wasted.
But the harsh reality of having to drive hit me when I got behind the wheel. I remember hesitantly putting the keys in the ignition and thinking, “I can barely hold a conversation right now, let alone get myself home.” But I got home, by the miracle of prayer and what I can only assume was beginners luck. It was also 1993 in Boston and you could still get stopped for drunk driving and told to just go straight home. This was before the crime of driving while intoxicated went mainstream.
Upon reflection, I can’t believe how stupid I was. There really isn’t any accident more tragic than one directly related to drugs and alcohol. In fact, it can sometimes feel like these aren’t even accidents at all. While most of us agree that addiction is a disease that can’t be combated by willpower alone, becoming an addict often starts from a choice to experiment with substances. Though the naïveté of youth is generally understood, it’s hard not to feel angry when a horrific, even fatal, accident occurs that could have been avoided.
The Solution Is Simple, No Really
Thankfully, there seems to be a solution. Or the beginning of one, at least. States like South Dakota, North Dakota and Montana have implemented a less restrictive program for repeat DUI offenders called 24/7 Sobriety. Instead of revoking licenses and sending people to prison, 24/7 Sobriety makes offenders responsible for taking a police-administered Breathalyzer test twice a day if they want to keep their licenses and stay out of jail. While it seems too simple to be effective, the program has actually yielded a 99% success rate with people showing up and passing their tests.
So instead of encouraging DUI offenders to continue drinking and just not driving, 24/7 Sobriety supports behavior modification; which not only brings down the numbers of driving while intoxicated arrests, it reduces the cases of other alcohol and drug-related incidents like domestic violence. Sounds like a win-win-win situation.
24/7 Sobriety Works, Pass It on
So why is this simple, yet effective program not spreading like wildfire? According to Keith Humphreys, former senior policy adviser in the White House Office of National Drug Control Policy, it has to do with antiquated thinking about addiction. The idea that addicts have no self-control and can’t stop drinking without professional help makes it hard to get a program like 24/7 Sobriety passed in all states. Even with staggering success rates, some are still not convinced that those with substance abuse disorders can stop drinking just because they want to. Conceptually, I might agree‚ but the proof is in the pudding—people are putting down the bottle to hold onto their keys.
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