| NEWS RELEASE | FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE |
| State Rep. Dan Frankel |
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New NTSB 'Most Wanted List' urges restoring motorcycle helmet law;
Frankel plans to reintroduce bill in next session
HARRISBURG, Nov. 19 – The National Transportation Safety Board this week released an updated "Most Wanted List" of safety improvements it recommends be made to state laws. State Rep. Dan Frankel, D-Allegheny, welcomed the NTSB's addition of laws that require helmets for all motorcycle riders, a requirement Pennsylvania had until repealing it in 2003.
Frankel is the lead sponsor of a bill (H.B. 1253) to restore Pennsylvania's law and plans to reintroduce it in the next session of the General Assembly.
"Pennsylvania is facing a multi-billion-dollar budget deficit next year because the nationwide economic recovery is not as rapid as we all would hope. In addition to preventing the tragic, unnecessary loss of lives, restoring our helmet law would help to reduce costs for taxpayers, who ultimately pay the tab for the reckless choice not to wear a helmet. Private and public insurers, as well as hospitals, often provide uncompensated care for patients who have suffered traumatic and disabling injuries after failing to wear a helmet. Those costs in turn are absorbed by consumers and taxpayers," Frankel said.
The NTSB's statement said, "From 1997 through 2008, the number of motorcycle fatalities more than doubled during a period when overall highway fatalities declined. Although the number of motorcycle fatalities fell in 2009, the 4,400 deaths still outnumber those in aviation, rail, marine and pipeline combined.
"According to the U.S. Department of Transportation, head injury is the leading cause of death in motorcycle crashes.
"The NTSB therefore recommends that everyone aboard a motorcycle be required to wear a helmet that complies with DOT's Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard 218. Currently, 20 states, the District of Columbia and 4 territories have universal helmet laws that apply to all riders."
Pennsylvania law allows motorcycle riders 21 or older to go helmetless if they have been licensed to operate a motorcycle for at least two years or have completed a motorcycle safety course approved by the state Department of Transportation or the Motorcycle Safety Foundation. Anyone operating a motorcycle on a learner’s permit must wear a helmet regardless of age, according to PennDOT.
Frankel said: "The NTSB estimates that $13.2 billion was saved from 1984 to 1999 because of motorcycle helmet use. More recently, Maryland estimated that a repeal of its all-rider helmet law would increase Medicaid expenditures by $1.2 million in the first year and up to $1.5 million annually after that. In these increasingly difficult economic times, we should pass legislation which will help the Commonwealth save money and I believe this legislation would do exactly that."
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