Sir, As well as necessary efforts to “flatten the curve” and increase critical care capacity, emergency public health interventions that could address some of the biggest causes of hospital admissions deserve urgent consideration by the government. For example, each month there are nearly 3,000 road traffic collision-related admissions to NHS hospitals in England alone. Lowering and enforcing speed limits would reduce the frequency and severity of vehicle collisions. Other interventions deserving of consideration include: an NHS/BBC public information campaign to inform smokers of the additional risks related to Covid-19 and remote “help to quit” programmes; an effort to prevent falls through a mass-media campaign to encourage safe exercise among older people staying at home; and accelerated implementation of minimum unit prices for alcohol to reduce

Source: The Times March 24, 2020 23:58 UTC