June is Gun Violence Awareness Month. In 2017, there were 39,773 deaths in the United States involving guns; 23,854 were suicides. This is almost 3,000 more people killed with guns than the previous year — it is an increase of 10,000 from 1999 and the highest it has been since gun mortality data was first recorded in 1979. Nearly 109 people died every single day from gun violence in 2017. For Gun Violence Awareness Month we are highlighting the public health crisis and the barriers that are keeping effective prevention from being implemented. Before 1996 the Center for Disease Control […]
Tag: National Rifle Association (NRA)
Gun Violence is a Public Health Issue
In 2016, there were 36,978 deaths in the United States involving guns. This includes 732 children and 3,234 teenagers; 21,386 were suicides and 346 of the events are considered mass shootings (the FBI defines mass shootings as when four or more people are shot and/or killed in a single event at the same general time and location, not including the shooter). Despite disagreements on certain measures among Americans, gun violence can certainly be considered a public health issue in the U.S. Before 1996, the Center for Disease Control & Prevention (CDC) was charged with researching gun violence, much in […]