Enhanced Enforcement of the Minimum Legal Drinking Age in NYC

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Eleanore Emmeline Kennedy
5 years ago
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5 million people live in New York City Underage drinking in New York City 7% aged 15 20 49% speak a language other than English at home 24% speak English less than very well Source: 2014 American

1 Enhanced Enforcement of the Minimum Legal Drinking Age in NYC Aviva B. Grasso, MPH, CHES, Prevention Coordinator Bureau of Alcohol and Drug Use Prevention Care and Treatment New York City Department of Health and Mental Hygiene Public Health Response 8.5 million people live in New York City Underage drinking in New York City 7% aged % speak a language other than English at home 24% speak English less than very well Source: 2014 American Community Survey 27% of year olds in NYC are current drinkers* 53% of NYC high school students usually drink liquor** 21% usually purchase their own alcohol.** *NSDUH Sub state estimates, **NYC BRFSS, 2013 Got it some other way, 20% Took it from a store or family, 18% Method of Obtaining Alcohol Bought it, 21% Gave someone else money, 11% Someone gave it to me, 30% Advancing a prevention agenda in an era of health systems reform ~7,000 alcohol related emergency department visits per year among New Yorkers <21* One in 12 hospitalizations is alcohol related** Reducing alcohol related hospitalizations requires a multi pronged approach, with public awareness complementing other efforts Screening Brief Intervention and Referral to Treatment (SBIRT) Prevention and treatment programs Public awareness Enforcement of the minimum legal drinking age Enhanced enforcement as prevention Enhanced enforcement of laws prohibiting sales to minors reduces underage access to alcohol* When accompanied by other activities and publicity, underage drinking declines* Regular, well-publicized compliance checks 80-95% compliance.** *Drug Abuse Warning Network, 2011 **NYC SPARCS, 2014 *The Community Guide **National Liquor Law Enforcement Association 1

Nearly 10,000 off-premise licenses in NYC NYC receives funds to address alcohol One of 61 CDC Community

for local environmental, and infrastructure changes that impact health A multi pronged approach includes

(ABC) laws Dual mission regulate and control Licensing in the public interest Three regional offices

Department funded the State Liquor Authority to conduct random checks Off-premise outlet distribution,

generated using NYPD precinct zip codes Compliance checks conducted in all five NYC boroughs, 71 of 76

2 Nearly 10,000 off-premise licenses in NYC NYC receives funds to address alcohol One of 61 CDC Community Transformation Grant recipients Maximize public health impact through prevention Expand the evidence base for local environmental, and infrastructure changes that impact health A multi pronged approach includes enhanced enforcement of the minimum legal drinking age Enforcement of NY State Alcohol Beverage Control (ABC) laws Dual mission regulate and control Licensing in the public interest Three regional offices ~1,000 compliance checks per year in New York State among 40,000 liquor licenses The NYC Health Department funded the State Liquor Authority to conduct random checks Off-premise outlet distribution, 2014 Two part-time teams of investigators and underage buyers All licensees Licensees checked Lists generated using NYPD precinct zip codes Compliance checks conducted in all five NYC boroughs, 71 of 76 precincts Within each precinct, focused on areas with highest concentration of licensed premises Source: NYS Liquor Authority,

3 Compliance check process Undercover investigator enters store Underage buyer/decoy enters store and attempts purchase Minor leaves store and reports to other investigator First investigator rejoins others Record data and tag evidence Move on to next store 59% of stores sold to underage decoys 1027 compliance checks 963 stores 59% of stores sold 70% 60% 50% 40% 30% 20% 10% 0% % of Stores that sold to underage decoys 60% 61% Grocery Stores Wine/Liquor Stores 33% Pharmacies Recently cited stores were more likely to check ID and to refuse the sale 70% 60% 50% 40% 30% 20% 10% 0% Asked for ID Recently cited Not recently cited Refused to sell Limitations Proportion of successful buys varied by decoy Checks were conducted in retail dense areas of each precinct for reasons of efficiency Little publicity of the campaign 3

4 DOHMH launched several initiatives designed to raise awareness of alcohol sales to minors. Two target audiences: Off-premise liquor licensees/retailers General public Fact sheet about underage drinking Risks associated with underage drinking YRBS data Compliance check results On Health Department website, sent to CBOs and retailers YouTube video targeting adults Alcohol retailer handbooks Health Commissioner letter Sent to all off premise outlets in NYC (n=9,477) Underage drinking facts Compliance check results Encouragement to ID under 40 Invitation to training Responsible beverage service training Materials in English, Chinese, Korean, Spanish, and Arabic Simultaneous translation available Promoted to economic development and business improvement districts 4

Press release Limited response to initiatives Picked up by ten local media outlets and the Associated Press Press release Videos 10+ local outlets & Associated Press 357 views Public Health

Citing licensed establishments for selling alcohol to minors improves compliance with minimum drinking age laws. Wine and liquor stores should be included in a robust enforcement protocol.

5 Press release Limited response to initiatives Picked up by ten local media outlets and the Associated Press Press release Videos 10+ local outlets & Associated Press 357 views Public Health Initiatives Handbooks Letters Training 9105 delivered 35 inquiries 13 sessions 117 participants Workshop Outline A large proportion of NYC retailers sell alcohol to minors. Citing licensed establishments for selling alcohol to minors improves compliance with minimum drinking age laws. Wine and liquor stores should be included in a robust enforcement protocol. Developing sustainable initiatives to enforce alcohol control policies is a crucial public health response. Acknowledgements Enforcement made possible by funding from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Presentation developed with support from colleagues in the Bureau of Alcohol and Drug Use Prevention Care and Treatment John Capua, MPH; Ellenie Tuazon, MPH; Jaclyn Blachman-Forshay, MPH; Arpi Terzian, PhD; Hillary V. Kunins, MD, MPH 5

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