Study: Head Injuries Increase after Michigan’s Motorcycle Helmet Law Repeal

The 2012 partial repeal of Michigan’s universal motorcycle helmet law resulted in less helmet use and more head injuries, according to a new study in the American Journal of Public Health.

Researchers compared helmet use rates and motorcycle crash fatality risk for the 12 months before and after the law repeal by using a statewide data set of police-reported crashes. They linked police-reported crashes to injured riders in a statewide trauma registry, and compared head injury before and after the repeal.

Results showed that after the repeal, helmet use decreased by 24 percent in crash samples and 27 percent in trauma samples. Head injuries among hospitalized motorcyclists increased by 14 percent.

Male gender, alcohol intoxication, intersection crashes and crashes at higher speed limits increased fatality risk. Not wearing a helmet and alcohol intoxication increased head injury odds. Fatality rate overall, however, did not change.

“Michigan’s partial universal motorcycle helmet law repeal decreased helmet use and increased head injury among crash-involved motorcyclists. Furthermore, helmet non-use doubled the odds of a fatality and tripled the odds of a head injury,” the report’s authors explain. “Future research should examine the impact of Michigan’s helmet repeal by using additional years of data as they become available and examine the underlying direct and indirect costs associated with the repeal, especially the societal costs associated with providing more long-term head injury care for patients involved in motorcycle crashes.”

The report is: The Impact of Michigan’s Partial Repeal of the Universal Motorcycle Helmet Law on Helmet Use, Fatalities and Health Injuries.

Source: American Public Health Association

Topics Auto Michigan