Trinity Behavioral Care, The 4th and 12th Circuit AET teams joins hands with SAMHSA to promote The 2nd Annual “Out of Their Hands” Spring Blitz which will commence with regional press conferences on April 1, 2011.
The strict enforcement coupled with a strong media message will begin the next day on April 2 and run through April 30, 2011.
During that time, the South Carolina Alcohol Enforcement Teams and their enforcement and education partners will engage community residents, businesses, and others to deny alcohol access to those youth who are less than 20 years of age. More than 100,000 get it from a parent or guardian.
A new study by the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) indicates that 5.9 percent of adolescents aged 12 to 14 drank alcohol in the past month and that the vast majority of them (93.4 percent) received their alcohol for free the last time they drank. About 317,000 (44.8 percent) 12 to 14 year olds who drank in the past month received their alcohol for free from their family or at home.
This includes 15.7 percent (or an estimated 111,000) who were provided alcohol for free by their parents or guardians.
“People who begin drinking alcohol before the age of 15 are six times more likely than those who start at age 21 and older to develop alcohol problems. Parents and other adults need to be aware that providing alcohol to children can expose them to an increased risk for alcohol abuse and set them on a path with increased potential for addiction,” said SAMHSA Administrator Pamela S. Hyde, J.D.
For more information on the “Out of Their Hands” Campaign contact Prevention Services at Trinity Behavioral Care at these locations: Marlboro 843-479-5683, Dillon, 843-774-6591 and Marion 843-431-9225.