The Ak-Chin Child Passenger Safety Project

The purpose of the Ak-Chin Child Passenger Safety (CPS) Project is to decrease child injuries due to motor vehicle crashes. Motor vehicle crashes (MVCs) are the leading cause of death for American Indian and Alaska Native (AI/AN) children between the ages of 0-13, resulting in 151 deaths nationally between 2004-2013. According to the Centers for Disease Control (CDC), car seat use reduces the risk of death in passenger vehicle crashes by 71% for infants (aged <1 year) and by 54% among toddlers (aged 1-4 years). Booster seat use reduces the risk for serious injury by 45% for children aged 4-8 years when compared with seat belt use alone.Though child safety seat use rates for AI/AN communities vary greatly, rates are generally much lower than that of other racial groups. In 2011, the child restraint use for children from birth to age seven ranged from 79% to 99%. Reservations with primary seat belt laws have the highest use rates, followed by reservations with secondary seat belt laws; reservations with no seat belt law have the lowest use rates.