WASHINGTON, D.C. — U.S. Senator Carl Levin (D-Michigan) on MOnday, May 5, called for stricter laws to control gun violence, citing data from the American College of Physicians.
The text of his speech follows:
Listening to your doctor is just common sense. That’s why it’s important for Congress to take note that this April, the American College of Physicians (ACP), our nation’s largest medical-specialty organization and second largest physician group, released an important diagnosis: that our nation is trapped in an epidemic of gun violence. Fortunately, it also includes a treatment: a set of policy positions and recommendations to reduce gun violence in our country.
The ACP report begins with recognition that “firearm violence is not only a criminal justice issue but also a public health threat.” The statistics are undeniable: guns kill over 32,000 individuals in our nation every year – about 88 lives stolen, every day. But those are only the fatal shootings; the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention have estimated that more than 73,000 nonfatal firearm injuries occur in the United States every year. And what is a ‘nonfatal’ injury? Anything from a bullet grazing someone’s shoulder, to a domestic abuser taking aim at a spouse’s heart and striking the arm, to a child accidentally shooting him or herself in the stomach and barely surviving. ‘Nonfatal’ gun injuries may evade the first sad statistic, but they can be devastating all the same. These statistics also belie the collateral damage – the families, friends and communities shattered by a pull of the trigger.
The ACP report surveyed the highly-trained and clinically-minded internists whom we entrust with our health and well-being, along with that of our families, children and communities. Direct experience with the problem was widespread, with 63% of surveyed internists reporting having had patients who were injured or given fatal wounds by a gun. Other results showed overwhelming consensus: that 85% of surveyed internists believe firearm injuries are a public health issue; 95% support mandatory background checks on all firearm purchases; 86% support a ban on military-style assault weapons; 85% support a ban on high-capacity ammunition magazines; and 86% support the creation of requirements that all firearms include child-proof safety features. 76% of respondents agreed that gun safety legislation would “help to reduce the risk for gun related injuries or deaths.”
Responding to this consensus, the ACP report includes several recommendations to reduce gun violence in our society. It argues that all gun sales should be “subject to satisfactory completion of a criminal background check,” and supports enactment of “a universal background check system to keep guns out of the hands” of dangerous individuals. Fortunately, there is legislation pending in this Congress that would do just that.
It also supports the “enactment of legislation to ban the sale and manufacture for civilian use of firearms that have features designed to increase their rapid killing capacity (often called ‘assault weapons.’)” Legislation pending in this Congress would also accomplish that goal.
In addition, the report argues for “strong penalties and criminal prosecution for those who sell firearms illegally and those who legally purchase firearms for those who are banned from possession of them” – so called ‘straw’ purchases. And yes, there is legislation pending in this Congress to do that, too.
Mr. President, our nation’s medical community agrees with our law enforcement community, and the 90% of Americans who support sensible gun safety reforms. I urge my colleagues to listen to these important voices, and to pass the common-sense pieces of legislation already pending before this body. The cost of inaction is just too high.
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Preceding provided by U.S. Senator Carl Levin