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June 27, 2024

U.S. Surgeon General Declares Gun Violence a Public Health Crisis
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The U.S. surgeon general has declared gun violence a "public health
crisis." Dr. Vivek Murthy made the declaration in a video statement
released Tuesday - following years of pressure by gun control activists.

Surgeon General Vivek Murthy: "Gun violence has now become the leading
cause of death among children and teens. And that wasn't true a decade
ago or two decades ago. And so I'm issuing this advisory because I want
people to understand the urgency of addressing gun violence, the
importance of seeing it not as a political issue but as a public health
issue. and if we see it in that way, if we apply a public health
approach to gun violence, we can do what we did with cigarettes and with
car accident-related deaths, which is, ultimately, to make people safer,
to reduce the toll on their health, and ultimately improve people's
well-being."

The National Institutes of Health reports that last year nearly 43,000
people died in the United States from gun-related injuries.


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