Regional Alcohol Policy Meeting
Capital Region
November 13, 2024
Speakers
Haven Battles, PhD. Director, Alcohol Surveillance and Epidemiology Program; Assistant Director, Bureau of Chronic Disease Evaluation and Research, New York State Department of Health.
Sean Haley, MPH, PhD. Co-Founder of the National Alcohol Action Network and Associate Professor of Health Policy and Management. CUNY Graduate School of Public Health and Health Policy.
Agenda
ALCOHOL CONSUMPTION AND �ASSOCIATED HARMS IN NEW YORK STATE
Haven Battles, PhD
Alcohol Surveillance and Epidemiology Program
Bureau of Chronic Disease Evaluation and Research
New York State Department of Health
Disclaimer: This presentation is partially supported by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) as part of a financial assistance award totaling $166,667. The contents are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily represent the official views of, nor an endorsement, by CDC/HHS, or the U.S. Government.
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The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) defines excessive alcohol use as including:
BINGE �DRINKING*
HEAVY �DRINKING*
UNDERAGE DRINKING
PREGNANT DRINKING
For Men:
5 or more drinks on one occasion
For Women:
4 or more drinks on one occasion
For Men:
15 or more drinks in a week
For Women:
8 or more drinks in a week
Any alcohol use by those under age 21
Any alcohol use by pregnant people
Source: https://www.cdc.gov/drink-less-be-your-best/facts-about-excessive-drinking/index.html
*Note: People assigned female at birth typically experience greater impairment after drinking less alcohol than people assigned male at birth due to differences in body water content, hormones, body size, and metabolism. Data on gender and sexual identities are becoming more readily available, however these guidelines do not yet consider the complexity of biological characteristics, sex assigned at birth, gender identity, or the interactions among these factors. Therefore, people assigned female at birth, people who are intersex, and transgender people should defer to the more conservative guidelines outlined for women.
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What is considered a “drink”?
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Nearly 1 in 5 adult New Yorkers report excessive alcohol use, in the form of either binge or heavy drinking.
Over 8,050 New Yorkers die each year due to excessive alcohol use.
Excessive alcohol use can cause injuries, violence, and chronic disease.
Excessive drinking cost New York $16.3 billion in 2010, or roughly $843 in preventable costs per taxpayer.
Alcohol-related harms disproportionately impact under-resourced areas and people living in them.
Excessive alcohol use is a public health issue in New York State
Source: Centers for Disease Control Addressing Excessive Alcohol Use: State Fact Sheets
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UNDERAGE DRINKING �AND RELATED HARMS �IN NEW YORK STATE
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1 in 7 New York youth initiate drinking early (having their first drink before age 13)
New York State
United States
13.9%
15.0%
% of high school students who report having their first drink before age thirteen
Data source: NYS Youth Risk Behavior Survey, 2021
*https://www.niaaa.nih.gov/publications/brochures-and-fact-sheets/underage-drinking
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Alcohol is a widely used substance among NYS youth
Data source: NYS Youth Risk Behavior Survey, 2021
CURRENTLY DRINK
drank at least one drink during the past 30 days
1 in 5 �high school students
BINGE DRINK
drank 4+ drinks (females) or 5+ drinks (males) in a row within a couple hours during the past 30 days
1 in 10 �high school students
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Underage drinking can cause immediate and chronic health effects among youth
Over 100 New Yorkers under the age of 21 die due to alcohol use each year. This includes deaths from causes such as motor vehicle crashes, homicides, alcohol poisoning, and suicides.
Alcohol use impairs judgment and can increase the risk of physical and sexual assault among youth.
Alcohol use can interfere with normal brain development.
Data sources: Alcohol Related Disease Impact (ARDI) application, 2024. Available at www.cdc.gov/ARDI; https://www.niaaa.nih.gov/publications/brochures-and-fact-sheets/underage-drinking; https://www.cdc.gov/alcohol/fact-sheets/underage-drinking.htm
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ADULT EXCESSIVE ALCOHOL USE AND RELATED HARMS IN NYS
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Nearly 1 in 5 adults in New York State (18.4%) report excessive alcohol use, in the form of either binge or heavy drinking
Data source: NYS Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System, 2022
16.6%�BINGE DRINK
6.1% �HEAVY DRINK
MALES
WHITE, NON-HISPANIC; HISPANIC
YOUNGER ADULTS (Ages 18-34)
HIGHER EDUCATIONAL ATTAINMENT
HIGHER ANNUAL HOUSEHOLD INCOME
FREQUENT MENTAL DISTRESS
ADULTS WHO CURRENTLY SMOKE
Adults who are more likely to report binge or heavy drinking include:
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Among the 2 million NYS adults who report binge drinking…
25% consume�at least 7 DRINKS �per binge drinking �occasion
25% do so at least 4 TIMES�per month
The risk of alcohol-related harms increases with the amount of alcohol one drinks.
However, for some conditions, like some cancers, the risk increases even at very low levels of alcohol consumption.
Data source: NYS Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System, 2022; https://www.cdc.gov/alcohol/fact-sheets/moderate-drinking.htm
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Under-resourced communities experience greater harms related to excessive alcohol use, despite lower alcohol use rates.
Mulia N, Ye Y, Greenfield TK, Zemore SE. Disparities in alcohol-related problems among white, black, and Hispanic Americans. Alcohol Clin Exp Res. 2009 Apr;33(4):654-62. doi: 10.1111/j.1530-0277.2008.00880.x. Epub 2009 Jan 15. PMID: 19183131; PMCID: PMC2771773.
Vaeth PA, Wang-Schweig M, Caetano R. Drinking, Alcohol Use Disorder, and Treatment Access and Utilization Among U.S. Racial/Ethnic Groups. Alcohol Clin Exp Res. 2017 Jan;41(1):6-19. doi: 10.1111/acer.13285. Epub 2016 Dec 26. PMID: 28019654; PMCID: PMC5205547.
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Within NYS, the prevalence of adult binge drinking varies by county from 8.0% to 22.2%
Data source: NYS Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System, 2021
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Prevalence of binge drinking, among adults in Capital Region, 2021
Data source: NYS Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System, 2021
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Within NYS, the prevalence of adult heavy drinking varies by county from 2.0% to 12.5%
Data source: NYS Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System, 2021
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Prevalence of heavy drinking, among adults in Capital Region, 2021
Data source: NYS Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System, 2021
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From 2020-2021, the majority of annual excessive alcohol use-attributable deaths in NYS were from chronic vs acute causes
CHRONIC CAUSES
causes with a longer
duration from the time of
onset to the time of death
such as liver disease due to alcohol use and chronic pancreatitis.
ACUTE CAUSES
2,533
5,560
8,093 �deaths �per year
causes with a very short
duration from the time
of onset to the time of
death such as alcohol
poisoning, motor-vehicle
traffic crashes, and
suicide.
Data source: Alcohol Related Disease Impact (ARDI) application, 2024. Available at www.cdc.gov/ARDI.
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NYS youth and adults are more likely to report alcohol use than use of other substances. Yet, efforts to prevent excessive alcohol use and its related harms receive less resources.
20.0% use alcohol
15.7% use tobacco e-vapor products
14.2% use cannabis
5.0% smoke cigarettes
18.4% binge or heavy drink
5.3% use tobacco e-vapor products
12.8% use cannabis
11.3% smoke cigarettes
Youth Substance Use
Adult Substance Use
Data source: NYS Youth Risk Behavior Survey, 2021; Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System, 2022 (binge or heavy drink; smoke cigarettes); Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System, 2021 (tobacco e-vapor products); Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System, 2020 (cannabis)
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Despite health harms, NYS adults perceive alcohol use to be less serious than other public health substance use related issues
Data source: NYS Division of Chronic Disease Prevention Chronic Disease Public Opinion Poll, 2022
of adults think prescription �opioid misuse
is a serious public health problem
90%
of adults think heroin use �is a serious public health problem
88%
of adults think tobacco use�is a serious public health problem
85%
of adults think� e-cigarette/ vaping use�is a serious public health problem
82%
of adults think �alcohol use �is a serious public health problem
77%
46%
of adults think cannabis use �is a serious public health problem
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New Yorkers’ Support For Policy Solutions
Data source: NYS Division of Chronic Disease Prevention Chronic Disease Public Opinion Poll, 2022
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Thank You���To get in touch with the New York State Alcohol Surveillance and Epidemiology team, �email us at AlcoholData@health.ny.gov
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Why focus on alcohol policy? �
New York State Regional Alcohol Education Meetings:�Local Action, Statewide Solutions
Sean J. Haley PhD, MPH
Capital Region
November 13, 2024
Treatment
Prevention
Intervention
Strong evidence that greater alcohol availability is associated with more harms. �Source: Sherk et al. 2018; Bryden et al. 2012��Evidence-based alcohol policies can reduce excessive alcohol use and promote safer and healthier communities
Source: The Community Preventive Services Task Force (CPSTF)
The current alcohol policy landscape in NYS presents additional challenges to preventing alcohol-related harms
PRE-EMPTIVE STATE
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EVER EXPANDING AVAILABILITY
ALCOHOL �TAXES
To-Go alcohol legislation; Expansion of days and hours of sale
NYS prevents localities from passing laws that differ from the State’s alcohol control policies.
NYS hasn’t increased its beer or wine excise tax since 2009 or its distilled spirits tax since at least 2003.
TAX: Alcohol excise taxes in NYS haven’t kept pace with inflation, effectively making the product cheaper for consumers.
14th LOWEST beer tax �in the nation ($0.14/gallon)
6th HIGHEST liquor tax �in the nation ($6.44/gallon)
4th LOWEST wine tax �in the nation ($0.30/gallon)
INCREASING AVAILABILITY: Commission to Study Reform of the Alcoholic Beverage Control Law
Legislative Updates – Nov 2023
Legislative Updates – May 2024
ABC Commission recommendations continue to be adopted
As part of 2024/2025 budget:
Other “business and guest-friendly” measures:
Legislative Updates – Aug 2024
“NO MORE THAN THIRTY-SIX CASES (NO MORE THAN NINE LITERS EACH CASE) OF LIQUOR PRODUCED BY SUCH LICENSE HOLDER PER YEAR DIRECTLY TO A RESIDENT OF NEW YORK WHO IS AT LEAST TWENTY-ONE YEARS OF AGE, FOR SUCH RESIDENT'S PERSONAL USE” (9x36= 324 liters of spirits a year or 6.2 liters a week)
And just last month….
Not Since Prohibition have we seen so many government sanctioned increases in availability ……..
Strong association between an increase in alcohol availability and harms (including cancer)
What if this was tobacco?
Considerations
To Reduce Alcohol Related Harms
Step 1: Immediate Actions to Reduce Harms and to Establish Infrastructure
1) fund widespread community education about alcohol’s contribution to health, policy strategies to reduce alcohol related harms;
2) create stronger alcohol surveillance systems to assess alcohol availability, use, and related harms across populations, but especially youth;
3)conduct media surveillance to identify youth exposure and impact;
4) fund counter marketing to prevent youth initiation and
5) support program evaluation to optimize use of public resources
Step 1 (continued): Immediate Actions to Reduce Harms and to Establish Infrastructure
Step 2: Evidence-Based Policy Changes to Reduce Alcohol-Related Harms
Breakout Room Discussion
Agenda
Summary and Next steps
Thank You