All 50 States have a legal drinking age of 21;
however, many underage people obtain and
use alcohol. In 2004, 10.8 million persons
aged 12 to 20 (29%) used alcohol in the past month,
according to the National Survey on Drug Use and
Health (NSDUH).1
Underage use of alcohol can have both immediate
and long-lasting consequences. According to
the National Highway Traffi c Safety Administration,
nearly 25 percent of drivers aged 16 to 20
who were involved in fatal motor vehicle crashes
in 2003 had been drinking alcohol.2 Among 14
million adults who could be classifi ed as dependent
on or abusing alcohol in the past year, 95 percent
started drinking alcohol before age 21.3
The Drug Abuse Warning Network (DAWN)
collects data from a national sample of hospitals
on emergency department (ED) visits related to
recent drug use. Since 2003, DAWN has included
ED visits involving alcohol alone or in combination
with other drug(s) for patients younger than age
21. This report presents fi ndings on these alcoholrelated
ED visits for patients aged 12 to 20.
