Dr. Vivek Murthy issued the statement on Tuesday, June 25, highlighting that armed violence is today the main cause of death among children and adolescents
AP Photo/Susan Walsh
US Surgeon General Dr. Vivek Murthy
The US surgeon general declared gun violence in the country an “urgent public health crisis,” citing alarming statistics in a statement issued on Tuesday, June 25.
Vivek Murthy said the statement was “the first publication from the Office of the Surgeon General dedicated to gun violence and its consequences for the health and well-being of the American public,” according to a press release shared with PEOPLE.
Over the past decade, the number of people who have died from gun-related injuries, including suicides, homicides and accidental deaths, has increased, and gun violence is now the leading cause of death among children and teenagers, the release states.
In the 35-page statement, Murthy details alarming statistics, including a total of 48,204 people who died from firearm-related injuries in 2022. This number represents 8,000 more than the lives lost in 2019 and 16,000 more than the lives lost in 2010.
The release also details a nationally representative survey that found that the majority of U.S. adults or their family members (54%) have experienced a gun-related incident. Another survey found that half (51%) of U.S. 14- to 17-year-olds worry about school shootings, and nearly six in 10 report that they have “’recently thought about what would happen if a person with a gun walked into’ their home.” House. school or a nearby school.”
Additionally, nearly 6 in 10 U.S. adults say they worry “sometimes,” “almost every day,” or “every day” about a loved one being a victim of gun violence, according to the statement.
According to data published by the Gun Violence Archive, the US experienced more than 600 mass shooting incidents every year between 2020 and 2023, compared to an average of less than 400 annual mass shooting incidents between 2015 and 2018, from according to the statement.
In 2022, the majority of all homicides (79% [19,651 of 24,849]) and suicides (55% [27,032 of 49,476]) in the USA were carried out with a firearm, the statement states. Additionally, data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and the World Health Organization (WHO) found that in 2015, the overall firearm death rate was 11.4 times higher in the U.S. compared to 28 other high-income nations. .
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The statement also noted that firearm homicides and suicides are not equally distributed and that disparities are long-standing among the country’s population groups. In 2022, blacks suffered the highest age-adjusted gun homicide rates across all ages (27.0 per 100,000), compared to 6.2 per 100,000 (all races/ethnicities).
“Gun violence is an urgent public health crisis that has led to loss of life, unimaginable pain and profound suffering for too many Americans,” Murthy said.
He added, “We don’t need to continue down this path and we don’t need to subject our children to the continued horror of gun violence in America. All Americans deserve to live their lives free from gun violence, as well as the fear and devastation it brings. It will take commitment collective of our nation to turn the tide of gun violence.”
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Read the original article at People.
