Gun violence is a public health epidemic.
For years the gun lobby has avoided admitting it’s an epidemic. They have blocked research into gun violence, stifled open dialog and derailed state and federal gun reform efforts.
Physicians see pain and suffering from gun violence every day. We see it racing into our emergency departments in the back of an ambulance with lights flashing and sirens
blaring. And we see it in our primary care clinics and psychiatry practices, as we try to help our patients make sense of why their loved one was lost to suicide-by-firearm. That’s why physicians fight back when we are told to “stay in your lane.” Because, as it turns out, helping end an epidemic is in fact “our lane.”
In 2020, gun violence and firearm-related accidents killed more than 48,000 Americans, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Of those, more than 24,000 died by suicide. According to the CDC, firearms recently became the number one cause of death for children in the United States. Children are dying in places meant to care and nurture them, lockdown drills are an accepted reality, and mass shootings are so common as to risk inducing numbness. Our children deserve better.
The common-sense measures proposed by the Minnesota Legislature treat guns and responsible gun owners with the respect they are due and are largely based on elements taught in every gun safety class. We also need better research and evidence-based strategies to further reduce morbidity and mortality. More attention is needed on the fatal link between firearms and suicide. These measures will save lives. Amid a gun violence epidemic, every life counts.
Dr. Will Nicholson is a family physician and president of Minnesota Medical Association.
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