No state does enough to protect residents from preventable deaths and injuries on the road, in their homes and communities or at work, a new report from the National Safety Council (NSC) found.
Preventable deaths across the nation are at all-time high, the group noted, but none of the 50 states or Washington, D.C. got an "A" grade for overall safety, as rated by the organization. NSC's report, The State of Safety, details issues state-by-state in an assessment of how well Americans are protected from risk.
Washington, D.C. and seven states — California, Connecticut, Illinois, Maine, Oregon and Washington –received a "B" overall in the report. Eleven states failed and got an "F", including Arizona, Arkansas, Idaho, Kansas, Mississippi, Missouri, Montana, Oklahoma, South Carolina, South Dakota and Wyoming.
The report comes as National Safety Month, which is observed each June to draw attention to eliminating preventable deaths, comes to a close. Fatalities from poisonings (including drug overdoses), motor vehicle crashes, falls, drowning, choking and fires have increased by 7% since 2014, NSC cited statistically, and are claiming more than 146,000 lives every year.
The NSC report assessed states' safety efforts including laws, policies and regulations relating to issues behind the greatest number of preventable deaths and injuries. In addition to receiving an overall grade, states earned grades in road, home/ community, and workplace safety.
The five highest- and lowest-scoring states for road safety, as ranked in the report, are:
| Highest | Lowest |
| Illinois | Wyoming |
| Louisiana | Arizona |
| Washington, D.C. | Missouri |
| Delaware | South Dakota |
| Maine | Montana |
The five highest- and lowest-scoring states for home and community safety are:
| Highest | Lowest |
| Maryland | Utah |
| Connecticut | Missouri |
| California | Idaho |
| New Mexico | South Carolina |
| Massachusetts | Mississippi |
The five highest- and lowest-scoring states for workplace safety are:
| Highest | Lowest |
| Illinois | Missouri |
| Washington | South Dakota |
| Colorado | Idaho |
| Minnesota | Wyoming |
| Washington, D.C. | Kansas |
"The cultural 'novocaine' has to wear off," said Deborah A.P. Hersman, president and CEO of the National Safety Council. "We lose more than 140,000 people because of events we know how to prevent. This report provides states with a blueprint for saving lives, and we hope lawmakers, civic leaders, public health professionals and safety advocates use it to make their communities measurably safer."
More information is available at www.nsc.org/stateofsafety, or download the entire report at www.nsc.org/NSCDocuments_Advocacy/State-of-Safety/State-Report.pdf.
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