According to the Centers for Disease Control (CDC), in 2009, motor vehicle accidents accounted for one in four deaths among 15- to 24-year-olds, making it the leading cause of death for that age group. These accidents also represented 60% of all deaths in this age group due to unintentional injury.1
American Indian/Alaska Native and Hispanic populations are more often involved in motor vehicle crashes in the United States than whites or blacks.2 About 7% of all deaths in 2007 among American Indians and Alaska Natives and 5% of deaths among Hispanics were attributed to vehicle crashes. This is compared with less than 2% of all deaths among whites and blacks in the United States in the same year.2
- Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), National Center for Injury Prevention and Control. (2012). Leading causes of death. Retrieved May 4, 2012, from http://www.cdc.gov/injury/wisqars/leading_causes_death.html [top]
- West, B. A., & Naumann, R. B. (2011). Motor vehicle-related deaths—United States, 2003–2007. CDC Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report, 60, 52–55. Retrieved May 4, 2012, from http://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/preview/mmwrhtml/su6001a10.htm?s_cid=su6001a10_w [top]