Enforcement of the Legal Minimum Drinking Age in the United States

@article{Wagenaar1994EnforcementOT,
  title={Enforcement of the Legal Minimum Drinking Age in the United States},
  author={Alexander C Wagenaar and Mark Wolfson},
  journal={Journal of Public Health Policy},
  year={1994},
  volume={15},
  pages={37-53}
}
We studied patterns and levels of enforcement of the legal drinking age in the United States. Major findings include: (1) rates of enforcement of the legal drinking age are very low; (2) actions against outlets or adults providing alcohol to youth are particularly rare; (3) two of every thousand occasions of illegal drinking by youth under 21 are estimated to result in an arrest; (4) five of every 100,000 youth drinking occasions are estimated to result in an Alcohol Beverage Control agency… 
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107 Citations

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Minimum legal drinking age (MLDA) laws provide an example of how scientific research can support effective public policies after scientists found that traffic crashes increased significantly among teenagers between 1970 and 1975.
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The wide array of public and institutional policies available to reduce alcohol-related problems are described, which include alcohol retail establishments, other businesses, worksites, schools, colleges/universities, law enforcement agencies, religious institutions, insurance agencies, and alcohol producers.
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Policy approaches to prevention have considerable promise for addressing underage drinking and its associated problems, but it is clear that no policy can be effective unless it is accompanied by enforcement and by awareness on the part of the intended targets of both the policy and the enforcement efforts.
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TLDR
Though these laws have successfully reduced underage drinking, several additional strategies are noteworthy, including preventative and intervention efforts incorporating environmental, individual, communal, and parental factors.
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Alcohol clearly is the drug of choice among youth. The vast majority of persons under 21 have consumed it, a significant minority drink heavily, and few youth have difficulty obtaining it. Although…
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