 | The 131st Annual Meeting (November 15-19, 2003) of APHA |
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| The 131st Annual Meeting (November 15-19, 2003) of APHA |
Yimaris Menendez, MA, Puerto Rico Coalition to Reduce Underage Drinking, P.O. Box 29132, San Juan, PR 00929-0132, 787-641-1985 ext. 301, copram@pr.aspira.org
Puerto Rico has a high prevalence of alcohol use among youth and high rates of alcohol-related problems such as traffic fatalities, crime and reduced productivity among the workforce. In response to these problems, an island-wide coalition, COPRAM, was created in 1996 to reduce underage drinking in Puerto Rico. COPRAM is part of the Reducing Underage Drinking through Coalitions (RUDC) project funded by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation. The goal of the project is to reduce alcohol use and alcohol-related problems among youth through implementation of policies. With assistance from their host agency, ASPIRA of Puerto Rico, and the project’s program officer, the American Medical Association, COPRAM implemented several policy strategies toward this goal. Examples of COPRAM strategies include enforcing laws that prohibit the provision and sale of alcohol to minors under eighteen years old, and promoting laws that prohibit the establishment of alcohol outlets within 100 meters of schools, universities, child care and rehabilitation centers, and churches. This session will describe these and other COPRAM strategies and discuss the coalition’s successes and challenges.
Learning Objectives:
Keywords: Youth Access, Coalition
Presenting author's disclosure statement:
I do not have any significant financial interest/arrangement or affiliation with any organization/institution whose products or services are being discussed in this session.