ENA Statement on Surgeon General Declaring Gun Violence Public Health Crisis
June 25, 2024 • Emergency Nurses Association Firearms Injury Prevention Public Health
On Tuesday, ENA released the following statement about the surgeon general's advisory declaring gun violence a public health crisis.
“Today, U.S. Surgeon General Vivek Murthy declared what emergency nurses know all-too-well: Gun violence is a public health crisis. Murthy’s call to action aligns with ENA’s positions related to, among other things, a ban on assault weapons, universal background checks for firearm purchases and the need for greater firearm safety education.
Emergency nurses see firsthand the damage caused by firearms – whether in a mass shooting, urban violence, self-harm or intimate partner violence – and understand deeply the need to find solutions that reduce the frequency and severity of firearm injuries and deaths.
Those solutions cannot be reached soon enough. Lives are at stake.” – ENA President Chris Dellinger
Read the U.S. Surgeon General's Advisory "Firearm Violence: A Public Health Crisis": https://www.hhs.gov/sites/default/files/firearm-violence-advisory.pdf
Read more about ENA’s 2023 Firearm Safety and Injury Prevention Position Statement: https://www.ena.org/press-room/articles/detail/2023/12/11/ena-calls-for-assault-weapons-ban-firearms-purchase-age-increase
