When: 2 p.m. Wednesday, April 6, 2005

Where: Arlington Convention Center

1200 Ballpark Way, Arlington TX

Atrium/Foyer – Convention Center South Entrance

Who: Georgia S. Chakiris, Regional Administrator, National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), Fort Worth

Dr. Robert Cluck, Mayor of Arlington, Texas

Mike Moncrief, Mayor of Fort Worth, Texas

Kenneth Mayfield, Dallas County Commissioner, Dallas, Texas

Kelly Burdick, Recovering Alcoholic – A Personal Story

Eric Niedermayer, Executive Director, Tarrant Council on Alcoholism & Drug Abuse

What: One of every 13 adults has a serious problem with alcohol, yet only a fraction seek help.

Alcohol abuse and dependency results in 100,000 deaths every year in the U.S. National Alcohol Screening Day on April 7 is a nationwide outreach and educational initiative designed to identify and provide information about the dangers of alcohol abuse to those needing help and their families. The Mayors of Arlington, Dallas and Fort Worth have proclaimed April 7 as Alcohol Screening Day to help the Dallas/Fort Worth area traffic safety and alcohol abuse prevention advocates raise public awareness about alcohol’s impact on health and safety. The Tarrant Council on Alcoholism & Drug Abuse will announce free, confidential alcohol screenings at six area locations on April 7. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration will discuss plans for using screening and brief interventions as a means to deter alcohol impaired driving.

Spanish: Tarrant Council’s Cynthia Cuellar will be available for interviews in Spanish.

Facts: Texas continues to top the nation with over 1,700 alcohol-related traffic deaths every year.

In 2003 in Texas, 47 percent of all traffic fatalities were the consequence of alcohol involved crashes, compared to 40 percent for the nation. In 2003, Dallas and Tarrant counties had a total of 190 alcohol-related traffic deaths. Health and medical professionals are in a unique position to use their expertise and influence for alcohol counseling at a time when the drinking driver might heed such advice. NHTSA and Tarrant Council will be working to promote screening and brief interventions as a way to encourage at-risk drinkers to seek treatment.

Photo Opportunity: Mock screenings will be conducted following the news conference by professional alcohol counselors with members of the media to give reporters a first hand look at how the process works to identify existing or potential problems with alcohol.

Contacts: Cynthia Cuellar, Tarrant Council, 817-332-6329

Bruce Shults, NHTSA South Central Region, 817-978-3653