ASTHO and Safe States Alliance Commit to Supporting State Injury and Violence Prevention Programs

January 26, 2017

ARLINGTON, VA—The Association of State and Territorial Health Officials supports the just-released Safe States Alliance’s 2015 State of the States report, which highlights the important role that state health department injury and violence prevention (IVP) programs play in addressing injuries and violence across the nation, including falls, prescription drug overdoses, sexual violence, child passenger safety, and suicide.

ASTHO and the Safe States Alliance are committed to advancing the significant efforts of state injury and violence prevention programs. According to the report, nearly one person dies every three minutes due to injuries and violence, and the total lifetime costs of injuries and violence sustained in a single year amount to $671 billion in medical and work loss expenses. The costs are disproportionate to the investments, with only $90 million dollars being invested into prevention across states surveyed for this report.

“State IVP programs are working to lift the immense health and societal burden of injuries and violence to create a society where people can live to their full potential,” says Dr. Michael Fraser, ASTHO Executive Director. The State of the States report is the only national assessment of capacity among state public health IVP programs.

“The State of the States report is critical for sharing the vital work of our state health departments and informing our federal, state, and local prevention partners of the need for continued and expanded support of comprehensive injury and violence prevention programs across the country,” says Amber Williams, executive director of the Safe States Alliance.

ASTHO affirms that injury and violence prevention activities are an integral component of public health practice to improve health outcomes. Efforts should use a multidisciplinary approach, address prevention of injury and violence across the lifespan, and focus on a broad range of injury prevention issues. For more information, view ASTHO’s Preventing Injuries and Violence Position Statement.