skip to main content
skip to newscasts

Thursday, March 28, 2024

Public News Service Logo
facebook instagram linkedin reddit youtube twitter
view newscast page
play newscast audioPlay

The latest on the Key Bridge collapse, New York puts forth legislation to get clean energy projects on the grid and Wisconsin and other states join a federal summer food program to help feed kids across the country.

view newscast page
play newscast audioPlay

Republicans float conspiracy theories on the collapse of Baltimore's Key Bridge, South Carolina s congressional elections will use a map ruled unconstitutional, and the Senate schedules an impeachment trial for Homeland Secretary Myorkas.

view newscast page
play newscast audioPlay

Historic wildfires could create housing and health issues for rural Texans, a Kentucky program helps prison parolees start a new life, and descendants of Nicodemus, Kansas celebrate the Black settlers who journeyed across the 1870s plains seeking self-governance.

North Dakota Pays a High Cost for Excessive Drinking

play audio
Play

Monday, January 13, 2014   

BISMARCK, N.D. - A new report from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has found that at least 38 million Americans drink too much, and with that come major public health expenses for each of the states. The costs related to binge or heavy drinking come in areas like health care, social services and criminal justice, according to Pamela Sagness, prevention administrator, Division of Mental Health and Substance Abuse, North Dakota Department of Human Services.

"We know that in North Dakota, alcohol is one of the primary contributing factors to crime. One-quarter of all of our crime in this state is alcohol-related. So, it's pretty hard to not acknowledge that. A quarter of our arrests in North Dakota are actually DUIs," Sagness said.

The CDC estimated that excessive drinking costs North Dakota at least $420 million a year. The report also noted that only about one in six people talks to their doctor about drinking, although it said alcohol screening and brief counseling could help heavy drinkers cut their consumption by 25 percent.

North Dakota has been working to change the culture around drinking and driving, and underage consumption. Sagness noted that those efforts will get a big boost this year, thanks to a nearly $10 million grant.

"We have funding to provide to local public health units and tribes in North Dakota to build a plan around how they're going to tackle underage drinking and adult binge drinking. We really have the opportunity to do some grassroots, local-level work and to really make a difference in this area," she said.

Nationally, the CDC estimated the annual cost of excessive alcohol use at more than $200 billion, along with nearly 90,000 lives lost each year.

The CDC report is available at http://1.usa.gov. North Dakota substance abuse information is at http://bit.ly/1hePTiK.



get more stories like this via email

more stories
Many factors affect a customer's bill amount, including energy usage, weather, and the number of days in a billing period, according to Arizona Public Service. (Jason Yoder/Adobe Stock)

Social Issues

play sound

Earlier this month, a new Arizona Public Service rate hike went into effect and one senior advocacy group said those on a fixed income may struggle …


Social Issues

play sound

Michigan recently implemented a significant juvenile justice reform package following recommendations from a task force made up of prosecutors…

Social Issues

play sound

A mix of policy updates and staffing boosts has helped to put wage theft enforcement on the radar in Minnesota, and officials leading the efforts are …


More than six in 10 Americans favor keeping the abortion pill mifepristone available in the U.S. as a prescription drug, while over a third are opposed, according to a Gallup poll. (Adobe Stock)

Social Issues

play sound

New research shows more than six in 10 abortions in the U.S. last year were medically induced, and U.S. Sen. Catherine Cortez Masto - D-NV - is …

Social Issues

play sound

Colorado is working to boost the state's agricultural communities by getting more fresh, nutritious foods into school cafeterias - and a new online …

Social media platform X temporarily shutdown searches of "Taylor Swift" following the release of explicit deepfake images in early 2024. (Mdv Edwards/Adobe Stock)

Social Issues

play sound

Missouri lawmakers are concerned with protecting people from the potential risks of the increasing accessibility of AI-generated images and videos…

Social Issues

play sound

A 2023 study from the University of Nebraska Medical Center concluded the number of Nebraskans with a mental health or substance abuse disorder has pr…

Environment

play sound

A farm group is helping Iowa agriculture producers find ways to reduce the amount of nitrogen they use on their crops. Excess nitrates can wind up …

 

Phone: 303.448.9105 Toll Free: 888.891.9416 Fax: 208.247.1830 Your trusted member- and audience-supported news source since 1996 Copyright © 2021