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Announcement: National Child Passenger Safety Week — September 18–24, 2016

Weekly / September 16, 2016 / 65(36);987


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This year, National Child Passenger Safety Week is September 18–24. In the United States, motor vehicle–related injuries are a leading cause of death among children (1). In 2014, a total of 602 passenger vehicle occupants aged 0–12 years died as a result of a crash (2), and more than 121,350 were injured (1). Of the children who died in 2014, 34% were known to be unrestrained (2). To keep child passengers as safe as possible, drivers should use age- and size-appropriate restraints for all child passengers until adult seat belts fit properly (a lap belt should lay across upper thighs, not abdomen, and a shoulder belt should lay across shoulder and chest, not neck or face) and follow the American Academy of Pediatrics child passenger safety recommendations (3). In addition, children aged <13 years should be properly restrained in the back seat.

As part of National Child Passenger Safety Week, September 24 has been designated as National Seat Check Saturday. On this day, drivers with children who ride in car seats or booster seats are encouraged to visit a child safety seat inspection station to have a certified technician inspect their car seat for proper installation and proper use free of charge. Additional information and an inspection station locator are available from CDC at http://www.cdc.gov/motorvehiclesafety/child_passenger_safety and the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration at http://www.nhtsa.gov/Safety/CPS. Promotional materials in English and Spanish are available at http://www.trafficsafetymarketing.gov/cps.

References

  1. CDC. Web-Based Injury Statistics Query and Reporting System (WISQARS). Atlanta, GA: US Department of Health and Human Services, CDC; 2016. https://www.cdc.gov/injury/wisqars/
  2. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. Traffic safety facts 2014 data—occupant protection. Washington, DC: US Department of Transportation; 2016. https://crashstats.nhtsa.dot.gov/Api/Public/ViewPublication/812262
  3. Durbin DR; Committee on Injury, Violence, and Poison Prevention. Child passenger safety. Pediatrics 2011;127:e1050–66. CrossRef PubMed

Suggested citation for this article: Announcement: National Child Passenger Safety Week — September 18–24, 2016. MMWR Morb Mortal Wkly Rep 2016;65:987. DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.15585/mmwr.mm6536a6.

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