Health Departments in North Georgia Awarded Car Seat Mini Grant

Buckle Up Right, Every Trip, Every Time

NORTH GEORGIA – Several county health departments in the North Georgia Health District were awarded the 2016 Car Seat Mini-Grant by the Georgia Department of Public Health, Injury Prevention Program. Through the Mini-Grant, health departments and collaborating community partners are able to work together to provide car seats and education to financially eligible families in Fannin, Gilmer, Murray, Pickens and Whitfield Counties!

This program is funded by the Governor’s Office of Highway Safety to help ensure Georgia’s children are safe while riding in motor vehicles.

And it works! Since 2007, the education, car seats and booster seats provided through the Mini Grant prevented serious injury or death and saved at least 303 of Georgia’s children who were involved in crashes. According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, car seats reduce fatal injuries by 71 percent among infants and by 54 percent among children ages 1 to 4 years in passenger cars. Car seats offer the best protection for children in the event of a crash, and they are most effective when installed and used correctly. Nearly three out of every four car seats are not used properly, placing children at unnecessary risk.

Keeping children safe is vital, and the Car Seat Mini-Grant is a great opportunity for communities to help protect kids from serious injuries or death in motor vehicle crashes.

In Fannin, Gilmer, Murray, Pickens and Whitfield Counties, the Mini-Grant is enabling public health departments and their partners to educate parents and caregivers on how to properly install and use car seats, offer car seat inspections and provide car seats and booster seats to financially eligible families. Through the Car Seat Mini-Grant, agencies supporting more than 130 counties are working to keep Georgia’s children safe. These programs help families get their children buckled up right, every trip, every time.

For more information about the car seat program in North Georgia, contact the Fannin, Gilmer, Murray, Pickens or Whitfield County health department (numbers are listed below). If you would like information regarding other counties involved in the program, please contact the Georgia Department of Public Health’s Child Occupant Safety Project via email at injury@dph.ga.gov or at (404) 679-0500.