141st APHA Annual Meeting and Exposition

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Recorded Annual Meeting Presentations (RAMP) are now available for purchase.
Only $90 for presenters, $140 for registered attendees and $200 for non-attendees.

Online Program

281639
State alcohol policies environment and remission from alcohol dependence


Monday, November 4, 2013 : 9:30 a.m. - 9:50 a.m.

Ziming Xuan, ScD, SM, MA, Department of Community Health Sciences, Boston University School of Public Health, Boston, MA
Jason Blanchette, MPH, Section of General Internal Medicine, Boston Medical Center, Boston, MA
Toben F. Nelson, ScD, Division of Epidemiology and Community Health, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, MN
Thien Nguyen, MPH, Department of Community Health Sciences, Boston University School of Public Health, Boston, MA
Timothy Heeren, PhD, Department of Biostatistics, Boston University School of Public Health, Boston, MA
Timothy S. Naimi, MD, MPH, Section of General Internal Medicine, Department of Medicine, Boston University School of Medicine, Boston, MA
Background: Prevalence of excessive alcohol consumption and per capita alcohol consumption are strongly linked to the prevalence of alcohol dependence in US states. A stronger policy environment is associated with a lower prevalence of binge drinking, but the relationship between the policy environment and remission from alcohol dependence is unknown.

Methods: An Alcohol Policy Scale (APS) score was created from data on 29 state-level alcohol control policies from the Alcohol Policy Information System and other data sources and weighted by their relative efficacy and degree of implementation for each U.S. state and year from 1999-2001. Data on remission from alcohol dependence were obtained from the National Epidemiologic Survey on Alcohol and Related Conditions (NESARC) wave 1 (2001-2002). We examined the link between APS scores and remission from alcohol dependence using multilevel logistic regression analysis accounting for clustering among individuals within states.

Results: Among individuals meeting criteria for alcohol dependence, those who resided in states with higher APS scores had higher odds of full remission from alcohol dependence (OR=1.15, 95% CI 1.08, 1.23) compared with those in states with lower APS score. Sensitivity analyses using different lag periods between policy exposure and remission outcomes and different methods of computing APS scores did not substantially change the results.

Summary: More restrictive state-level alcohol policies may help prevent or facilitate remission from clinical alcohol use disorders.

Learning Areas:

Conduct evaluation related to programs, research, and other areas of practice
Public health or related laws, regulations, standards, or guidelines
Public health or related public policy
Public health or related research
Social and behavioral sciences

Learning Objectives:
Describe the relationship between the alcohol policy environment and remission from alcohol dependence.

Keyword(s): Alcohol, Public Health Policy

Presenting author's disclosure statement:

Qualified on the content I am responsible for because: I have a ScD and 10 years of experience in alcohol research. I have been involved in several NIH funded projects on the topics of alcohol policies, prevention and treatment. I currently serve as a Research Assistant Professor at Boston University.
Any relevant financial relationships? No

I agree to comply with the American Public Health Association Conflict of Interest and Commercial Support Guidelines, and to disclose to the participants any off-label or experimental uses of a commercial product or service discussed in my presentation.

Back to: 3001.0: Patterns of Alcohol Policy and Drinking Outcomes in US States