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Pennsylvania

Adolescent Profile

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Mental HealthViolence and Injury PreventionYouth Development

State Choices to Promote Healthy Behaviors

Rates of Motor Vehicle Traffic Occupant Deaths per 100,000, 2007
Rates of Motor Vehicle Traffic Occupant Deaths per 100,000, 2007

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Rates of Motor Vehicle Traffic Occupant Deaths per 100,000, 20071

Promotion, Prevention, and Early Intervention

  • Require injury and violence prevention and safety taught in schools [2006]2

Law and Legislation

  • Require helmets for all motorcycle and low-power cycle (LPC) riders 17 and younger [2010]3
  • Require bicycle helmets on riders 17 and younger [2010]4
  • Ban all cell phone use for adolescent novice drivers [2010]4
  • Ban texting while driving for adolescent novice drivers [2010]5
  • Stalking statutes explicitly address cyberstalking, including third party harassment [2006]6
50-State Data   Glossary

State Choices to Promote Quality

Promotion, Prevention, and Early Intervention

  • Require school curricula to address dating violence [2010]7

Workforce Development

  • Provide funding for staff development or offered staff development on violence and injury prevention and safety to health education teachers [2006]8

Law and Legislature

  • Have laws that protect students from bullying and harassment on the basis of sexual orientation and gender identity or expression [2010]9
  • Have graduated driver licensing system [2010]10
  • Require learner's entry age at 16 [2010]10
  • Require learner's holding period at least 6 months [2010]10
  • Require practice driving certification at least 30 hours [2010]10
  • Require night driving restriction at 9 or 10pm [2010]10
  • Restrict underage passengers to 1 or 2 [2010]10
  • Require that restrictions last until age 18 [2010]11
  • Have domestic violence protection laws for adolescents that received a score of B or higher from Break the Cycle [2009]12
  • Allow victims of domestic violence who are dating their abuser to apply for a civil domestic violence protection or restraining order [2009]12
  • Have protection laws that do not exclude same-sex couples, explicitly or by stated intent [2009]12
  • Allow minors to petition for protection orders [2009]13
  • Allow victims to petition for restraining order against a minor [2009]13
50-State Data   Glossary
  
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Data Notes and Sources

Last Updated: June 1, 2011

These state profiles are part of the Improving the Odds for Adolescents project, which is supported by a generous grant from The Atlantic Philanthropies. Contact us with questions or to update your state profile.

  1. Web-based Injury Statistics Query and Reporting System (WISQARS), National Center for Injury Prevention and Control, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. 2009. Accessed Nov. 8, 2010, from www.cdc.gov/ncipc/wisqars.
  2. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, State-Level School Health Policies and Practices. A State-by-State Summary from the School Health Policies and Programs Study 2006. Table 1.5. Accessed July 29, 2010, from www.cdc.gov/HealthyYouth/SHPPS/2006/summaries/pdf/State_Level_Summaries_SHPPS2006.pdf.

    Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, State-Level School Health Policies and Practices. A State-by-State Summary from the School Health Policies and Programs Study 2006. Table 1.6. Accessed July 29, 2010, from www.cdc.gov/HealthyYouth/SHPPS/2006/summaries/pdf/State_Level_Summaries_SHPPS2006.pdf.

  3. All LPCs with an engine displacement greater than 50cc, brake horsepower greater than 1 1/2, or can attain speeds greater than 25 mph are covered by the motorcycle helmet law.

    Insurance Institute for Highway Safety, Highway Loss Data Institute. 2010. Current US Motorcycle and Bicycle Helmet Laws website. Accessed Apr.16, 2010, from www.iihs.org/laws/HelmetUseCurrent.aspx.

  4. Insurance Institute for Highway Safety, Highway Loss Data Institute. 2010. Current US Motorcycle and Bicycle Helmet Laws website. Accessed Apr.16, 2010, from www.iihs.org/laws/HelmetUseCurrent.aspx.

  5. Governors Highway Safety Association: The States' Voice on Highway Safety. 2010. Cell Phone and Texting Laws website. Accessed Apr. 16, 2010, from www.ghsa.org/html/stateinfo/laws/cellphone_laws.html.

  6. Goodno, Naomi H. 2006. Cyberstalking, a New Crime: Evaluating the Effectiveness of Current State and Federal Laws, Berkeley Electronic Press Legal Series, Paper 1689. Accessed June 22, 2010, from Law.bepress.com/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=7936&context=expresso.

  7. Break the Cycle: Empowering Youth to End Domestic Violence. 2009 and 2010 State Law Report Cards: A National Survey of Teen Dating Violence Laws. Accessed May 27, 2010, from www.breakthecycle.org/system/files/pdf/2010-Dating-Violence-State-Law-Report-Card-Full-Report.pdf.

    State School Healthy Policy Database: Injury and Violence Prevention. 2010. National Association of State Boards of Education. Accessed February 18, 2010 from nasbe.org/healthy_schools/hs/bytopics.php?topicid=1170&catExpand=acdnbtm_catA.

  8. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. State-Level School Health Policies and Practices: A State-by-State Summary from the School Health Policies and Programs Study 2006. Table 1.14. Accessed Mar. 5, 2010, from www.cdc.gov/HealthyYouth/SHPPS/2006/summaries/pdf/State_Level_Summaries_SHPPS2006.pdf.

  9. States With Safe Schools Laws. Gay, Lesbian and Sraight Education Network website. Accessed May 26, 2010, from www.glsen.org/cgi-bin/iowa/all/library/record/2344.html?state=media&type=media.

  10. Insurance Institute for Highway Safety, Highway Loss Data Institute. Licensing Ages and Graduated Licensing Systems: Summary of all US Graduated Driver Licensing Laws. 2010. Accessed May 27, 2010, from www.iihs.org/laws/pdf/us_licensing_systems.pdf

  11. No passenger restriction.

    Insurance Institute for Highway Safety, Highway Loss Data Institute. Licensing Ages and Graduated Licensing Systems: Summary of all US Graduated Driver Licensing Laws. 2010. Accessed May 27, 2010, from www.iihs.org/laws/pdf/us_licensing_systems.pdf

  12. Break the Cycle: Empowering Youth to End Domestic Violence. 2009 and 2010 State Law Report Cards: A National Survey of Teen Dating Violence Laws. Accessed May 27, 2010, from www.breakthecycle.org/system/files/pdf/2010-Dating-Violence-State-Law-Report-Card-Full-Report.pdf.

  13. Data not available.

    Many states do not explicitly specify.

    Break the Cycle: Empowering Youth to End Domestic Violence. 2009 and 2010 State Law Report Cards: A National Survey of Teen Dating Violence Laws. Accessed May 27, 2010, from www.breakthecycle.org/system/files/pdf/2010-Dating-Violence-State-Law-Report-Card-Full-Report.pdf.