Seat-Belt Sense

What will it take to persuade a few obstinate state lawmakers to pass a bill that could save hundreds of lives a year?

How many more children will die because their parents "forgot" to fasten seat belts? How many more millions will be spent on health-care costs for unbuckled motorists?

There are so many valid reasons for Florida to follow the lead of 20 other states and Washington, D.C., and pass a law that would allow law enforcement to ticket unbelted motorists without stopping them first for another infraction.

And there's only one shameful reason that hasn't happened: personal politics.

Some minority lawmakers fear that changing the law will encourage police to target minority motorists. There's one sure-fire way to prevent that from happening: Buckle up. Others say it's a question of personal privilege. Hardly. The law already requires motorists to buckle up, with the exception of back-seat passengers over the age of 18. Police just can't properly enforce the law. That's not personal privilege. That's insanity.

Consider the statistics compiled by the National Safety Council and other advocates:

- A primary-enforcement law would increase seat-belt usage by about 15 percent.

- Motor-vehicle crashes account for more than 50 percent of the trauma incidents handled by cash-strapped emergency rooms, and a primary-enforcement law could significantly reduce those costs. Insurance and Medicaid costs similarly would fall.

- More than 1,300 people lost their lives in traffic accidents in Florida between 1995 and 2002 because lawmakers haven't acted to pass this law.

- A new federal transportation-spending plan is expected to reward states that pass primary-enforcement seat-belt laws, which could mean a Florida windfall of up to $50 million.

Copyright (c) 2004, Orlando Sentinel
 

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