1913

National Safety Council is chartered.

1924

First car with safety glass windows as standard equipment is offered by Cadillac.

1927

Interstate mailing of firearms through the U.S. Postal Service is banned.

1932

Maryland is the first state to introduce mandatory car inspections.

1934

National Firearms Act regulates the sale of fully automatic weapons, silencers, sawed-off shotguns, and other ''gangster-type weapons."

1937

Godfrey publishes one of the first statements on the need for public health involvement in accident prevention in the American Journal of Public Health.

1938

Legislation is passed mandating the licensing of dealers and manufacturers involved in interstate firearm transactions; firearm sales to people convicted of certain crimes are prohibited.

1942

DeHaven describes structural environments as a primary cause of injury in falls from heights.

1943

American Public Health Association (APHA) Committee on Administrative Practice appoints a subcommittee on accident prevention; the subcommittee reports accident prevention programs in six state and two local health departments.

1945

Federal Children's Bureau, American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP), National Safety Council, and Metropolitan Life Insurance cosponsor national child safety campaign.

APHA Subcommittee on Accident Prevention develops program guidelines for accident prevention; the subcommittee reports accident prevention programs in 9 state and 25 local health departments.

1948

W.K. Kellogg Foundation awards first home accident prevention demonstration grant.

1949

Gordon formalizes concept that epidemiology could be used as a theoretical foundation for accident prevention.

1950

AAP forms Committee on Accident Prevention.

First International Committee on Alcohol, Drugs, and Traffic Safety Conference is held in Stockholm.

1951

W.K. Kellogg Foundation awards 3- to 6-year home accident prevention demonstration projects to 10 states

1953

First conference on home accident prevention is held at University of Michigan, School of Public Health; sponsors include National Safety Council, APHA, U.S. Public Health Service (U.S. PHS), and W.K. Kellogg Foundation.

Human Factors in Air Transportation is published by McFarland.

Flammable Fabrics Act and Federal Hazardous Substances Act are passed.

1955

McFarland publishes on epidemiological principles applicable to the study and prevention of childhood accidents, in the American Journal of Public Health.

First annual Stapp conferences on the biomechanics of crashes is held.

APHA surveys 1,556 state, local, and provincial health departments to assess the scope and effectiveness of health department programs in accident prevention; 33 state, 3 provincial, and 296 local health departments report having an accident prevention program; 62 report a full-time position in place for public health safety.

1956

Accident Prevention Program is initiated by the U.S. PHS.

1957

The American Association for Automotive Medicine (later, the Association for the Advancement of Automotive Medicine) is established.

1959

Insurance Institute for Highway Safety is founded.

1960

APHA public policy statement recommends that accident prevention be recognized as a major public health problem and that all units of APHA cooperate to improve accident prevention efforts at the local, state, and national levels.

U.S. PHS Division of Special Health Services establishes the Division of Accident Prevention.

1961

Gibson publishes theory of injury produced by energy exchange.

APHA publishes Accident Prevention: The Role of Physicians and Public Health Workers.

The Journal of Trauma begins publication.

1964

Haddon, Suchman, and Klein publish Accident Research: Methods and Approaches.

Eleven schools of public health develop training programs in injury prevention, funded by the U.S. PHS.

The four major U.S. auto manufacturers install two front-seat lap belts as standard equipment.

1965

A Guide to the Development of Accidental Injury Control Programs is published by U.S. PHS.

Unsafe at Any Speed by Ralph Nader is published.

1966

Haddon matrix is published.

Accidental Death and Disability: The Neglected Disease of Modern Society is published by the National Research Council (NRC).

National Traffic and Motor Vehicle Safety Act establishes the National Highway Safety Bureau (later, National Highway Traffic Safety Administration [NHTSA]).

1968

APHA publishes Accidents and Homicide by Iskrant and Joliet.

Federal Gun Control Act places additional restrictions on who can own firearms.

American Trauma Society is established.

Lap belts in all seated occupant positions are installed as standard equipment by the four major U.S. auto manufacturers.

1969

Accident Analysis and Prevention journal begins publication.

Journal of Safety Research begins publication.

1970

Poison Prevention Packaging Act mandates use of safety caps on a variety of products.

Occupational Safety and Health Act of 1970 establishes the Occupational Safety and Health Admini

stration and the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health.

Highway Safety Act of 1970 establishes NHTSA.

Final Report on the National Commission on Product Safety is released.

1972

Consumer Product Safety Act establishes the Consumer Product Safety Commission.

Highway Loss Data Institute is founded.

1973

Roles and Resources of Federal Agencies in Support of Comprehensive Emergency Medical Services is published by the NRC.

National Center on Child Abuse and Neglect is established with the passage of the Child Abuse Prevention and Treatment Act (P.L. 93-247).

Emergency Medical Services Systems Act of 1973 is passed.

National Institute on Disability and Rehabilitation Research is founded at the Department of Education.

1974

General Motors produces first airbags.

Congress enacts the 55 mile per hour national maximum speed limit.

National Association of Governors' Highway Safety Representatives is established.

1975

Fatality Analysis Reporting System is established by NHTSA.

1977

Mine Safety and Health Administration is established to administer the provisions of the Federal Mine Safety and Health Act of 1977.

1978

National Coalition Against Domestic Violence is founded.

Emergency Medical Services at Midpassage is published by the NRC.

Tennessee is the first jurisdiction in the world to pass a child passenger safety law.

Remove Intoxicated Drivers (RID) is founded.

1979

Division of Maternal and Child Health funds injury prevention projects in Massachusetts, Virginia, and California for 3 years, including the first statewide comprehensive injury prevention program effort based in a state health agency.

Surgeon General issues the first national agenda for health promotion and disease prevention, Healthy People: The Surgeon General's Report on Health Promotion and Disease Prevention, which identifies the reduction of injuries as a major preventive health goal.

The Centers for Disease Control (CDC) establishes a violence epidemiology branch to track the incidence of interpersonal violence.

1980

Handbook on Accident Prevention is published by AAP.

First population-based and emergency-room-based injury surveillance system is implemented in the United States (Massachusetts and Ohio).

Mothers Against Drunk Driving (MADD) is founded.

1981

National Environmental Health Association conducts survey to evaluate injury prevention efforts (particularly within state health departments) nationwide; only 12 state health departments are found to have programs.

National Child Passenger Safety Association is established.

First National Conference on Injury Control, sponsored by the Johns Hopkins University and the CDC, is held in Baltimore.

1983

Developing Childhood Injury Prevention Programs: An Administrative Guide for Maternal and Child Health (Title V) Programs is published by the Division of Maternal and Child Health.

CDC hosts an invitational injury program management course for state health agency officials.

Center to Prevent Handgun Violence is founded.

1984

First U.S. seat-belt use law is enacted in New York.

Health Services, Preventive Health Services, and Home and Community Based Services Act (P.L. 98-555) establishes the Emergency Medical Services for Children (EMS-C) program.

Contra Costa County, California, issues isolation fencing ordinance for new pools.

Association of Schools of Public Health Conference on the Prevention of Injuries is held in Atlanta.

1985

Every state has passed legislation requiring the use of child safety seats.

Injury in America: A Continuing Public Health Problem is published by the NRC and the Institute of Medicine (IOM).

New England Network to Prevent Childhood Injuries establishes the first regional injury control network. Surgeon General's Workshop on Violence and Public Health is held in Leesburg, Virginia.

1986

Injury Prevention Act places an injury control program at CDC; Division of Injury Epidemiology and Control is established in the CDC Center for Environmental Health.

Minimum drinking age of 21 legislation is enacted by Congress.

National Council on Disability report Toward Independence is released.

First Maternal and Child Health demonstration is funded to address violence.

1987

National SAFE KIDS Campaign is launched.

Conference on Injury in America: A New Approach to an Old Problem, is held in Atlanta sponsored by CDC and NHTSA.

California enacts first legislation requiring bike helmets for children 4 years and under as passengers on bicycles.

CDC violence prevention program moves from Center for Health Promotion to Center for Environmental Health and Injury Control.

1988

Injury Control: A Review of the Status and Progress of the Injury Control Program at the Centers for Disease Control is published by NRC and IOM.

Second National Injury Control Conference, sponsored by CDC and NHTSA, is held in San Antonio, Texas.

Harvard Childhood Injury Prevention Resource Center survey report Injury Prevention Programs in State Health Departments is published. Surgeon General's Workshop on Drunk Driving is held in Washington, D.C.

Advocates for Highway Safety is established.

1989

Cost of Injury: A Report to Congress is released.

Arizona, Rhode Island, and Washington are the first states to mandate E-coding for hospital discharges.

Injury Prevention: Meeting the Challenge is published as a supplement to the American Journal of Preventive Medicine.

First World Conference on Accident and Injury Prevention is held in Stockholm, Sweden.

1990

CDC releases report to Congress, Childhood Injuries in the United States.

CDC sponsors Forum on Youth Violence in Minority Communities—Setting the Agenda for Prevention—in Atlanta.

Carnegie Corporation of New York sponsors conference on the state of the art of evaluation in violence prevention programs for adolescents.

Trauma Care Systems Planning and Development Act of 1990 is passed.

Children's Safety Network is established by Maternal and Child Health Bureau (MCHB).

The Injury Control Act of 1990 (P.L. 101-558) is passed.

1991

First International Conference on Safe Communities, Safecomm-91, is held in Falkoping, Sweden, sponsored by the World Health Organization (WHO).

Intermodal Surface Transportation Efficiency Act is enacted, continuing state drunk-driving incentive grant programs.

Third National Injury Control Conference is held in Denver, Colorado, sponsored by CDC.

WHO Helmet Initiative begins.

NIMH and MCH sponsor conference on The Impact of Community Violence on African American Children and Families: Collaborative Approaches to Prevention and Intervention.

Disability in America: Toward a National Agenda for Prevention is published by IOM.

Child Health Day 1991—Looking Out: Understanding and Preventing Childhood Injuries is held.

A Data Book of Child and Adolescent Injury is released by Children's Safety Network.

1992

Americans with Disabilities Act is passed.

Surgeon General's Workshop—Keeping Kids Safe: Strategies for Preventing Violence and Injury, sponsored by MCHB, is held in Columbia, Maryland.

CDC Division of Injury Control (DIC) becomes the National Center for Injury Prevention and Control.

Department of Health and Human Services Office of Inspector General releases its report, Injury Control.

Handgun Epidemic Lowering Plan Network is established.

1993

Understanding Child Abuse and Neglect is published by NRC.

Injury Control in the 1990s: A National Plan for Action is published by CDC.

Second World Conference on Injury Control is held in Atlanta.

Understanding and Preventing Violence is published by NRC.

Emergency Medical Services for Children is published by IOM.

1994

First Symposium of the International Collaborative Effort on Injury Statistics is held in Bethesda, Maryland.

Brady Handgun Violence Prevention Act establishes a 5-day waiting period and background check for handgun purchases.

General Accounting Office report Public Health Services: Agencies Use Different Approaches to Protect Public Against Disease and Injury is published.

Third International Conference on Safe Communities is held in Harstad, Norway.

The Partnership Against Violence Network is created in response to a report to the President and the Domestic Policy Council by the Interdepartmental Working Group on Violence.

A Report of the Task Force on Trauma Research is published by NIH.

Violent Crime Control and Law Enforcement Act bans manufacture and sale of semiautomatic rifles and handguns with specific characteristics.

1995

Injury Prevention begins publication.

National Violence Prevention Conference—Bridging Science and Program is held in Des Moines, Iowa.

Fourth International Conference on Safe Communities is held in McMurray, Alberta, Canada.

All states but one have mandatory seat-belt use laws.

1996

International Conference on Bicycle Helmet Initiatives is held in Melbourne, Australia

Third International Conference on Injury Prevention and Control is held in Melbourne, Australia.

NRC publishes Understanding Violence Against Women.

National Occupational Research Agenda is published by NIOSH.

Final Report of the Poison Control Center Advisory Work Group is released.

Domestic Violence Offenders Gun Ban is passed, which prohibits gun purchase by individuals convicted of a domestic violence misdemeanor.

1997

Fourth National Injury Control Conference—Safe America is held in Washington, D.C.

Injury Chartbook. Health, United States, 1996–1997 is published by the National Center for Health Statistics.

Enabling America: Assessing the Role of Rehabilitation Science and Engineering is published by IOM.

1998

Fourth World Conference on Injury Prevention and Control is held in Amsterdam.

Safe Kids at Home, at Play, and on the Way is published by the National SAFE KIDS Campaign.

Dual airbags are standard equipment for all passenger cars.

Violence in Families: Assessing Prevention and Treatment Programs is published by NRC.