Commentary on Maclennan et al. (2013): Evolution of local alcohol policy research. What's next?

Alcohol control advocates, policymakers and researchers in several countries have discovered—or, perhaps, rediscovered—local policy. For example, in the United States, the Community Preventive Services Task Force’s Guide to Community Preventive Services (the ‘Community Guide’) recommends a number of interventions that, in at least some jurisdictions, can be put into place by enacting—or preventing the reversal of—local policy.

These include maintaining limits on days and hours of sale, regulation of alcohol outlet density and preventing privatization of retail alcohol sales [1]. Other local policies, such as social host ordinances, have diffused widely in the United States, although there is not yet a scientific evidence base supporting their effectiveness [2]. Maclennan and colleagues offer an important contribution towards establishing a better understanding of local
alcohol policy development by presenting case studies from the experiences in three New Zealand communities [3].   > > > >   Read More