Car Accidents and Crash Deaths Cost $41 Billion in Lawyers and Medical Fees Annually According to CDC

According to statistics in a report from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), motor vehicle crash-related deaths in the United States resulted in an estimated $41 billion in medical and work loss costs in a year. More than half of the costs from car accidents and crash deaths were from 10 states the report said.

Ranked from highest to lowest in costs, the CDC’s data showed the following numbers for the top 10 states: California ($4.16 billion), Texas ($3.50 billion), Florida ($3.16 billion), Georgia ($1.55 billion), Pennsylvania ($1.52 billion), North Carolina ($1.50 billion), New York ($1.33 billion), Illinois ($1.32 billion), Ohio ($1.23 billion), and Tennessee ($1.15 billion).

The report was based on 2005 car accident data as this was the most comprehensive data on costs associated with crash deaths is available.

“Deaths from motor vehicle crashes are preventable,” said CDC Director Thomas R. Frieden, M.D., M.P.H. “Seat belts, graduated driver’s license programs, child safety seats, and helmet use save lives and reduce health care costs.”

“It’s tragic to hear that anyone dies on our nation’s roads. But it’s especially so when the person who loses his or her life is a child or teenager,” said Linda Degutis, Dr. P.H., M.S.N., director, National Center for Injury Prevention and Control. “Child passenger safety laws and comprehensive graduated driver licensing laws are proven to protect young lives. We encourage states to strengthen and enforce these laws to help keep more of our young people safe.”

After a review of the statistical data, the CDC put together recommendations to help prevent future injuries, deaths and to keep medical costs down. The following are the recommendations from the CDC:

•Primary seat belt laws, which allow motorists to be stopped and cited for not wearing seat belts. Seat belts reduce the risk of death to those riding in the front seat by about half.
•Strong child passenger safety policies, which require children to be placed in age- and size-appropriate child safety and booster seats while riding in vehicles.
•Comprehensive graduated driver licensing (GDL) systems, which are proven to reduce teen crashes. GDL systems help new drivers gain experience under lower-risk conditions by granting driving privileges in stages. The most comprehensive GDL systems have been associated with up to 40 percent decreases in crashes among 16-year-old drivers.
•Universal motorcycle helmet laws, which require riders of all ages to wear helmets. Helmet use can reduce the risk of death in a motorcycle crash by more than one-third and reduce the risk of brain injury by 69 percent.

“These preventable costs are a reflection of the terrible suffering of American families whose loved ones are killed or injured on the roads,” said Norman Mineta, chairman of Make Roads Safe North America and the longest serving Secretary of Transportation in U.S. history. “Today, on the launch of the first-ever Decade of Action for Road Safety, occurring in 30 cities across our nation and 50 countries worldwide, it is time for all of us to take action to save lives at home and around the globe.”

Cost data by a particular state can be obtained from the CDC’s web site at: www.cdc.gov/motorvehiclesafety/statecosts.