Alcohol consumption numbers explained

To the editor:

Please find the explanation of how Jefferson County ranks second in the state in underage and binge drinking as requested in [Ledger letter ?Adults need to set example with alcohol consumption,? April 19, by Carol Lee Kessel].

Calculating adults offenses, the Iowa Department of Public Health divided the actual number of incidents (court records) into the county population to get a rating system.

Adult Binge Drinking Prevalence ? The 2008 EPI data reports 27.2% of Jefferson County adults binge drink.

Youth 30 Day Use ? Survey questions in the IYS show 47% of Jefferson County youth have used alcohol in the last 30 days.

Number of Adult Alcohol Related Offense Convictions ? 2008 records show 94 alcohol related convictions in the county. Divided by the population (13,661) yields a conviction rate of 68.8.

Number of Adult OWI Convictions ? In 2008, there were 77 adult OWI convictions divided by the population (13,661) yields a conviction rate of 56.4.

Now, IDPH compares the county specific data, number of adults who report binge drinking, (27.2%), the number of youth who report alcohol use in the last 30 days, (47%) the adult alcohol related conviction rate (68.8) and adult OWI conviction rate (56.4) to all 99 counties in the state.

When compared to other counties, Jefferson County raw numbers rank as below:

Adult Binge Drinking rank ? 10th in the state.

Youth 30 day alcohol use ranking ? 8th in the state.

Adult alcohol offense ranking ? 35th in the state.

Adult alcohol OWI ranking ? 48th in the state.

Finally, IDPH calculates a total score. Total Score = Sum (Binge Score 3 and Youth score 3) = 6 + Average (adult alcohol offense and OWI, 1) gives us a total score of 7, divided by the county size, (13,661) = we rank second in the state population as Jefferson County there would be 1,038 fewer binge drinkers and 180 fewer 30 day youth alcohol consumers.

For an apples to apples comparison, let?s compare Jefferson County to Madison

County which have similar populations. Madison County has 255 fewer residents, (13,406) but 299 more youth, (2,101) than Jefferson County. Madison County ranks 95th in the state in underage and binge drinking as shown in Table 3.

In population numbers, Madison County has 2,120 fewer binge drinkers and 196 fewer youth who have consumed alcohol in the last 30 days. The difference in binge drinkers between Madison County and Jefferson County is greater than the combined population of Libertyville (325), Lockridge (258), Batavia (476), Pleasant Plain (131) and Packwood (212).

? Don Sander, Jefferson County Alcohol Consumption Task Force, Fairfield