Category: Blog

Tribute to Joan Claybrook

Dear Care for Crash Victims Community Members:

Legal Reader has published an article thanking Joan for her work saving lives that continues to this day and will continue to save lives far into the future.

Please see it at http://www.legalreader.com/airbags-rating-vehicles-for-safety-saving-lives/

The article mentions only some of the highlights of her achievements.

Countless people and families saved from tragic deaths and injuries may not know how much thanks they owe to her hard and great work for decades.

But those of us who do know at least some of her efforts, leadership, and achievements are obliged to say “Thank You!” to Joan.

Her work will continue to save lives far into the future because thanks to Joan, Ralph Nader, Clarence Ditlow and many others the world of auto safety has been changed for the better forevermore.
 

Lou Lombardo

EMS Week May 21 -27, 2017 – Origin of “Care for Crash Victims”

Dear Care for Crash Victims Community Members:

As I write this on May 26, ahead of Memorial Day, President Trump has just embarrassed himself in Brussels.  See https://www.nytimes.com/2017/05/25/world/europe/donald-trump-eu-nato.html

And President Trump has arrived in Sicily.  See https://www.usnews.com/news/world/articles/2017-05-25/trump-arrives-in-sicily-ahead-of-group-of-seven-summit

Here’s hoping Sicily can inspire President Trump to greater humanitarian endeavors as it did for me.

In 1995, on a trip through Sicily, I drove through a large valley of crops, only fields of grain were visible.  Then I came upon a roadside shrine to a child killed in a crash at that spot. I was on vacation from work at NHTSA at the time.  I stopped and marveled at the deep love expressed in that shrine.  It planted a seed in my heart and mind that grew into a dream that some day in the U.S.A. a virtual Memorial Wall – an electronic map could be created on which people suffering family tragedies could post photos and stories of their lost loved ones.

My dream was that this Memorial Map would have a purpose of motivating and helping people to organize demand for an end to such tragedies.

Today the internet technologies for creating such a Memorial Map are now available.  I have a simple map by Congressional district with data on vehicle deaths by each year (2002 – 2015) available at https://www.arcgis.com/home/webmap/viewer.html?webmap=b6f7538422b5426294745e2affd24d8e&extent=-140.8255,18.5254,-48.8919,56.9713

Today the auto safety technologies are available to achieve an end to vehicle violence deaths and serious injuries in a decade.

Today the dream of a Memorial Map to organize people’s love into a force for an end to vehicle tragedies is still just a dream.

The U.S. Vehicle Violence Death Clocks continue to tick towards:

* 4 millionth fatality – at the rate of 100 deaths per day
* 1 billionth crash injury – at the rate of 400 serious vehicle injuries per day plus about 4,500 less serious injuries per day

*  Trillions of dollars in losses – valued by NHTSA at about $2 Billion per day
See attached NHTSA data.

But the dream of Victims’ Voices growing into a powerful force for good lives on!
 

Lou Lombardo

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Lou Lombardo
www.CareForCrashVictims.com

Bamboozled to Death in Montana and in the U.S.A. Today

Dear Care for Crash Victims Community Members:

Yesterday Montanans elected another Republican to Congress.  See
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/greg-gianforte-gop-wins-montana_us_5925fda5e4b061d8f81efde9

How many Montanans knew that about 4 people die of injuries due to vehicle violence each week in Montana?  See
https://www.arcgis.com/home/webmap/viewer.html?webmap=b6f7538422b5426294745e2affd24d8e&extent=-140.8255,18.5254,-48.8919,56.9713

How many Montanans knew that about 71% of people who died of these injuries were “Not Taken” to any medical facility for emergency care? See attached data.

How many Americans know that over the years 2011 – 2015 the number of Americans who died of injuries due to vehicle violence was 166,990 people.  And that 56% were “Not Taken” to any medical facility for emergency care.  DRTs!

What are DRTs?  Two years ago I wrote about EMS Week and how a Montanan taught me what DRTs are.  See https://www.careforcrashvictims.com/blog/blog-celebrates/

Imagine if each family that suffered such a tragedy posted their stories on a national online map.  Would we have seen more action to prevent such tragedies?

Fewer Americans would be bamboozled.

Lou Lombardo

Do “We the people” Want the Republican Health Plan?

Dear Care for Crash Victims Community Members:

Legal Reader has published an expanded article providing information, data, and map tools for Americans to more effectively voice their views to the media and elected officials for better health care.  See http://www.legalreader.com/people-want-republicans-version-health-care/

*  Life expectancy is generally better in Blue States than in Red.  See https://www.careforcrashvictims.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/05/FATALITYRatesLife-ExpectancyUninsuredMedicaidSheet1OnePagePortrait.pdf

*  Data on vehicle violence deaths in each Congressional District for each year 2002 – 2015 is available on an easy to use interactive map.  Just click on the district and the number of deaths in each year appear.  See https://www.careforcrashvictims.com/home/crash-death-mapping-tools/

Please share the article and use it to make your views heard and heeded so that more of us are healed rather than hurt. 

Each of us have the power to help prevent more harm.  Let’s use it.

Lou Lombardo

Where Are We Going? – Blue and Red State Rankings by Life Expectancy

Dear Care for Crash Victims Community Members:

National policies being proposed include big Safety-Net cuts.   See
https://www.washingtonpost.com/business/economy/trump-to-propose-big-cuts-to-safety-net-in-new-budget-this-week/2017/05/21/62c01f44-3e34-11e7-adba-394ee67a7582_story.html

An examination of Blue State and Red State policies on Medicaid and Life Expectancy indicates Trump Republican budget proposals will lead to more early deaths in the U.S.A..- the wrong way.

A summary analysis shows the following rankings. Details are attached.
.

Life Expectancy Ranking in (2015):
Sixteen Blue States and Nine Red States Ranked Among 25 Best States in Life Expectancy
HI 1st
CA 2nd
CT 3rd
MN 4th
MA 5th
NY 6th
CO 7th
NJ 8th
WA 9th
NH 10th
VT 12th
RI 14th
OR 17th
MD 22nd
IL 24th
ME 25th* – No Medicaid
UT 11th – No Medicaid
FL 13th – No Medicaid
WI 15th – No Medicaid
AZ 16th
ND 18th
SD 19th – No Medicaid
NE 20th – No Medicaid
Iowa 21st
ID 23rd – No Medicaid

Four Blue States and Twenty One Red States Ranked Among 25 Worst States in Life Expectancy
VA 26th – No Medicaid
DE 27th*
NV 34th*
NM 35th*
AK 28th*
MT 29th*
PA 30th*
TX 31st* – No Medicaid
KS 32nd* – No Medicaid
WY 33rd* – No Medicaid
MI 36th*
NC 37th* – No Medicaid
OH 38th*
MO 39th* – No Medicaid
GA 40th* – No Medicaid
IN 41st*
SC 42nd* – No Medicaid
TN 43rd* – No Medicaid
AR 44th*
KY 45th*
OK 46th* – No Medicaid
LA 47th*
WV 48th*
AL 49th* – No Medicaid
MS 50th* – No Medicaid

Note:  Asterisk = States which also have Worse than the National Average Number of Deaths per 100K People for All Causes (786 in 2014).  See

For motor vehicle deaths for each year (2002 – 2015) by Congressional District see https://www.careforcrashvictims.com/home/crash-death-mapping-tools/

Hopefully enough members of Congress can be persuaded by the deadly facts to steer a more humane course for America.
Lou Lombardo

Great Work By Crash Victims To Save Us All From Truck Underride Deaths and Injuries

Dear Care for Crash Victims Community Members:

Please see what two Mothers of Crash Victims have done to protect us all from similar tragedies.

See http://annaleahmary.com/2017/05/a-running-list-of-links-to-recent-significant-posts-on-annaleahmary-com/

Where is the media coverage of their great work?

The NY Times has a masthead stating “All the news that’s fit to print.”

The Washington Post has a better masthead “Democracy dies in darkness.”

Neither paper, as far as I know, has given proper attention to these tragedies that continue to mount for decades.

Why is that?

Lou Lombardo

VW Coverup of Diesel Pollution Emissions

Dear Care for Crash Victims Community Members:

NY Times publishes a breath taking report on the coverup by VW.  See https://www.nytimes.com/2017/05/06/business/inside-vws-campaign-of-trickery.html?emc=eta1

The people at the NY Times breathe heavily polluted air year after year.  See https://www.careforcrashvictims.com/blog/hope-for-government-of-by-and-for-the-people/

For a report on the air quality in your State and County see http://www.lung.org/our-initiatives/healthy-air/sota/

As I write this the Trump Auto Air Pollution Early Death Clock reads 15,340 early deaths attributed to auto air pollution in the U.S.A. since Trump’s inauguration.  See https://www.careforcrashvictims.com/trump-clocks/  This clock is based on the MIT study at http://news.mit.edu/2013/study-air-pollution-causes-200000-early-deaths-each-year-in-the-us-0829
 
For what people can do to continue the 50-year fight for clean air see http://www.legalreader.com/powers-of-the-people-on-earth-day-2017/
 

Lou Lombardo