Underage drinkers a New Year’s hazard

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Hospital emergency rooms nationwide get more visits from teenagers on New Year’s Day than any other day of the year. And it’s all about alcohol: drunk driving crashes, acute intoxication and booze-related mishaps. According to a new report by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, emergency department visits because of underage drinking are more than 250 percent higher on New Year’s Day than on average days. Last year, 1,980 underage drinkers were sent to the hospital on the first day of the year, compared to 546 such visits on an average day.

The New Year’s Day figures were higher than any other holiday period during the year. For instance there were 676 underage drinking visits on Memorial Day weekend and 942 on Fourth of July weekend, according to the report.

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