First-Ever Child Summer Safety Ranking Report: Vermont Leads the Nation with One of the Lowest Accidental Injury Death Rates

WASHINGTON, April 30 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- According to The Safe Kids U.S. Summer Safety Ranking Report, a new study released today by Safe Kids Worldwide, Vermont led the nation with one of the lowest children's accidental injury death rates in summer (1.63 per 100,000 children, below the national average of 3.67 per 100,000 children) and a 60.3 percent reduction in the summer rate over a five-year period. Wyoming scored last, with a children's accidental injury death rate in summer above the national average (8.27 per 100,000 children) and an 82.5 percent increase in that rate over a five-year period.

The report also shows that an average of 17 children a day, or 2,143 children in total, died from May 1st to August 31st in 2004 due to injuries, many of which could have been prevented. Also in 2004, 2.4 million children made emergency room visits due to accidental injuries, many of which resulted in paralysis, brain damage and other serious disabilities.

"The results should be a wake-up call to the states and the nation," said Martin Eichelberger, M.D., chairman of Safe Kids Worldwide and director, Emergency and Burn Services at Children's National Medical Center in Washington, D.C. "When a child dies every few hours from an accidental summer injury, many of which can be prevented, we have our work cut out for us."

Release of the report coincides with the kick-off of National Safe Kids Week in the United States, April 28 to May 6, 2007, and the start of summer, known by emergency personnel as "trauma season," since preventable accidental deaths and serious injuries to children increase dramatically

The five highest-ranking states were all found in the northeast -- Vermont (#1), New Jersey (#2), the District of Columbia (#3), New York (#4) and Delaware (#5). The five lowest-ranking states were Wyoming (#51), Alaska (#50), South Dakota (#49), West Virginia (#48) and Nebraska (#47).

The study reports that an average of 17 children a day, or 2,143 children in total, died from May to August in 2004 due to injuries, many of which could have been prevented. Also in 2004, 2.4 million children made emergency room visits due to accidental injuries, many of which resulted in paralysis, brain damage and other serious disabilities.

All 50 states and the District of Columbia were ranked according to the number of summertime accidental injury deaths per 100,000 children (ages 0 to 14) in their state, and the change in that rate over a five-year period (the average annual death rate for 1997-1999 vs. the average annual death rate for 2002-2004).

Underwritten by an educational grant from Johnson & Johnson, founding sponsor of Safe Kids Worldwide, the study was conducted by The Pacific Institute for Research and Evaluation in collaboration with an expert advisory panel.

Previous Safe Kids Worldwide research indicates that five of the most common causes of children's accidental injury deaths in summer are:

  -- Drowning (increases 89 percent in the summer over the annual monthly
     average)
  -- Biking (increases 45 percent)
  -- Falls (increases 21 percent)
  -- Motor vehicle passenger injuries (increases 20 percent)
  -- Pedestrian injuries (increases 16 percent).

In fact, almost 60 percent of total children's accidental injury deaths from May to August from 2001 to 2004 came from these risk areas. The report also demonstrates a 17.6 percent drop in children's accidental injury deaths in summer across the nation (comparing data from 1997-1999 to 2002-2004), yet children's accidental injury deaths continue to spike in the summer.

Safe Kids Worldwide recommends the following steps to reduce accidental injury and death to children during the summer months:

  -- Enact child safety legislation such as four-sided fencing around home
     pools and booster seat requirements;
  -- Educate adults and children about the right precautions to take.  For
     example, a properly-fitted helmet has proven to reduce the risk of
     brain injury by as much as 88 percent;
  -- Use safety devices, such as installing window guards on each window
     above the first floor to reduce the risk of falls; and
  -- Strengthen the enforcement of existing child safety laws.

National Safe Kids Week has been held annually for 19 years. This year's theme is Make It A Safe Kids Summer and is supported by Safe Kids Worldwide's founding sponsor, Johnson & Johnson. Safe Kids Week events are taking place in more than 300 communities across the nation to educate parents and communities about how to keep kids safe during the summer. In addition, Johnson & Johnson is sponsoring an advertising campaign with Turner Broadcasting and distributing safety information at retail locations.

For more information, please visit http://www.usa.safekids.org/ For a copy of the state rankings, please see next page. Safe Kids U.S. Summer Safety Rankings - April 2007 Unintentional Injury Deaths, May-August Children Ages 0-14 Percent Change Death Rate in Death Rate Rate/100,000 Over 5-year Period State Rank 2000-2004 97-99 to 02-04 Total US Average 3.67 -17.60% Vermont 1 1.63 -60.30% New Jersey 2 1.8 -39.50% D.C. 3 2.33 -49.10% New York 4 1.97 -25.50% Delaware 5 3.33 -34.30% Massachusetts 6 1.51 -18.90% Colorado 7 3.23 -31.40% Rhode Island 8 1.58 -16.40% Pennsylvania 9 2.91 -25.10% California 10 2.59 -22.20% Washington 11 3.17 -23.50% Maryland 12 2.42 -16.90% North Carolina 13 3.99 -26.70% Georgia 14 4.43 -31.50% Oklahoma 15 4.55 -30.90% Wisconsin 16 3.75 -21.50% Nevada 17 4.29 -23.30% South Carolina 18 4.62 -26.40% Arizona 19 4.77 -26.40% Illinois 20 3.34 -11.00% Connecticut 21 2.28 5.90% Virginia 22 3.04 -8.40% Texas 23 4.14 -15.50% Montana 24 5.93 -32.30% Idaho 25 5.96 -39.10% Alabama 26 5.17 -31.50% Ohio 27 3.45 -10.10% Maine 28 3.22 -5.50% Hawaii 29 2.75 21.90% Michigan 30 4.32 -14.70% Kansas 31 4.8 -21.90% Arkansas 32 6.61 -29.20% Minnesota 33 3.54 -8.00% Florida 34 4.31 -10.50% Oregon 35 4.25 -8.80% Indiana 36 4.61 -14.70% Iowa 37 3.81 -3.10% New Hampshire 38 3.21 72.60% Utah 39 4.73 -10.30% Louisiana 40 5.94 -15.00% Missouri 41 4.78 -9.00% North Dakota 42 4.45 8.20% New Mexico 43 5.08 -9.20% Mississippi 44 7.37 -15.00% Tennessee 45 4.89 -6.00% Kentucky 46 5.13 -1.30% Nebraska 47 4.88 43.30% West Virginia 48 5.08 31.40% South Dakota 49 8.47 16.80% Alaska 50 7.73 32.90% Wyoming 51 8.27 82.50%

For more information or for a copy of The Safe Kids U.S. Summer Safety Ranking Report, visit http://www.usa.safekids.org/.

Safe Kids Worldwide is a global network of organizations whose mission is to prevent accidental childhood injury, a leading killer of children 14 and under. More than 450 coalitions in 16 countries bring together health and safety experts, educators, corporations, foundations, governments and volunteers to educate and protect families. The organization was founded in 1987 by Children's National Medical Center with support from Johnson & Johnson. Johnson & Johnson, with approximately 110,600 employees, is the world's most comprehensive and broadly based manufacturer of health care products, as well as a provider of related services, for the consumer, pharmaceutical and medical devices and diagnostics markets. Johnson & Johnson has more than 200 operating companies in 57 countries around the world, selling products in more than 175 countries.

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