Place of Last Drink Pushed by Medical College of Wisconsin

A year ago, we discussed a sham report put out by the Biden Administration, and amplified by the Medical College of Wisconsin, looking to scare the public off of any amount of alcohol consumption by claiming that any amount increases the risk of cancer.

Now a year later, the Medical College of Wisconsin’s Alcohol Policy Project is pushing a plan to require that police officers ask those arrested for an alcohol related incident where they last had a drink.  The information would then be tracked.  It’s based on a program run in Minnesota.  It allows authorities to identify establishments, event venues or other locations that appear to have a pattern of overserving their customers.  If a location is identified as having a disproportionate number of people overserved, officials and the venue can work together to make changes and improvements—at least in theory.

The idea sounds fine at first, but there is cause for suspicion, and that makes it important for local tavern leagues and their members to actively communicate and work with law enforcement.  The main reasons for suspicion are due to the potential for inaccuracies and the apparent motives of the people who are pushing it here in Wisconsin.

First, the potential for inaccurate data is real.  A few years ago, Brown County law enforcement began implementing the Place of Last Drink tracking plan.  Local leaders in the Brown County Tavern League worked with law enforcement and monitored the activity closely.  In the end, Brown County did not find the program to be very useful and eventually discontinued it.  One of the problems they encountered was that many folks did not give accurate information as to where they had their last drink.  If they liked a tavern, they would not name that establishment but instead name a place they may have liked less.  And if someone had been somewhere they’d rather others didn’t know about—like a gentleman’s club—they might give the name of a nearby tavern instead.

Some officers believe their training and experience allow them to be able to tell who is lying and who is telling the truth.  But there’s no way to be sure.  In fact, one location in Brown Count was able to go back to their security cameras and prove the offenders who claimed to have been served there had not even been in their establishment.

What’s more, only about 25% of those arrested for drunk driving in Brown County said they had been at a tavern at all.  Most had been somewhere else such as a private party or event, etc.  In Minnesota, about one half of those arrested said they had come from a tavern or restaurant.

There are other complications with this scheme as well.  The growing use of marijuana and THC products complicates matters.  If someone has been using drugs, it makes process of determining what or who may be responsible for a person’s impairment more difficult.  And let’s not forget the main responsibility for any reckless behavior rests with the offender and not a responsible server.

Recently, another Wisconsin county has been informed that local law enforcement intends to start tracking the Place of Last Drink there as well, and more are likely to come.  Again, if your county tavern league gets the call that law enforcement intends to start tracking this information, communication is key and you’ll want to be a part of the process.  It was actually helpful to learn that most drunk driving offenders came from somewhere other than a tavern or restaurant.  It demonstrates that establishments and their trained servers are doing their part to protect the public and help ensure people drink responsibly.

But another concern comes from who is pushing the Place of Last Drink effort in Wisconsin.  The Alcohol Policy Project, located at the Medical College of Wisconsin, is no friend of the tavern industry, whether it’s pushing biased studies against moderate alcohol consumption or now, this scheme.   Police officers in Wisconsin and the Minnesota Place of Last Drink manual stress the need to track and identify ANY problem areas, but the Medical College website currently focuses mainly on tracking on-premise establishments.  And where others speak of working cooperatively with businesses, the Medical College’s Alcohol Policy Project is quick to suggest going to local governments with this questionable data to possibly hold it over an establishment for disciplinary action or make it difficult to renew their license.

The Medical College of Wisconsin notes that in 2020, 167 people died in motor vehicle crashes related to alcohol.  By using the questionable method of applying Minnesota’s findings to Wisconsin, they estimate that about half, or nearly 90 of those were coming from licensed on-premise establishments.  So, they are making this a top priority.  That sounds fine, but one might wonder why the Medical College of Wisconsin wouldn’t be more focused on eliminating medical errors that kill or permanently disable nearly 800,000 Americans annually.   Or making a top priority of bringing price transparency to a broken health care system, where 60% of hospitals fail to meet federal requirements.  Maybe it’s just easier to distract from the failures of the medical establishment by pointing fingers at someone else.

Regardless of their motives, where local law enforcement chooses to adopt a Place of Last Drink plan, be sure your local tavern league is a part of their process.  Many folks are surprised to learn that people involved in most alcohol related incidents on Wisconsin roads came from somewhere other than an on-premise establishment.  Being at the table will allow you to point out any potential flaws with their findings, correct any problems that might be identified in a spirit of cooperation rather than conflict, and will likely give you good information to prove just how responsibly Wisconsin’s tavern industry is run compared with the many other places where people consume alcohol.