SHM Signs Letter Urging Congress to Appropriate Funding for Firearm Morbidity and Mortality Reduction Research

Download Letter

The Honorable Patty Murray
Chair
Committee on Appropriations
U.S. Senate
Washington, DC 20510

The Honorable Susan Collins
Vice Chair
Committee on Appropriations
U.S. Senate
Washington, DC 20510

The Honorable Kay Granger
Chair
Committee on Appropriations
U.S. House of Representatives
Washington, DC 20515

The Honorable Rosa DeLauro
Ranking Member
Committee on Appropriations
U.S. House of Representatives
Washington, D.C. 20515

Dear Chair Murray, Vice Chair Collins, Chair Granger, and Ranking Member DeLauro:

As you consider appropriations for Fiscal Year (FY) 2025, the undersigned 434 national, state, and local medical, public health, and research organizations write to ask you to provide $35 million for the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), $25 million for the National Institutes of Health (NIH), and $1 million for the National Institute of Justice (NIJ) to conduct public health research into firearm morbidity and mortality prevention. We are grateful to Congress for providing $12.5 million for the CDC and $12.5 million for the NIH in FY 2024 and encourage Congress to sustain and build on this funding in FY 2025. We also encourage Congress to explore opportunities for building out and further supporting this research at all other appropriate agencies, to ensure that federally funded research can explore the full scope of this public health issue. A rigorous 2021 report estimated that the federal government will need to spend approximately $100 million per year to fully fund a comprehensive research agenda on reducing gun violence.¹

Across this country, communities are suffering from preventable firearm-related injuries and deaths. Suicide, violent crime, and accidental shootings cause trauma to families, communities, and children affected by these preventable tragedies. In 2022, the most recent year for which we have data, firearm-related injuries led to 48,117 total fatalities.² While the homicide rate declined slightly from a record high in 2021, it remains unacceptably high, and the suicide rate continued to rise in 2022.³

We need a comprehensive, evidence-based approach to reducing firearm-related suicides, violent crime, and accidental shootings. Rigorous prevention research that can accurately quantify and describe the roots of gun violence, inform strategies for responsible gun owners to avoid preventable injuries and deaths, and identify non-partisan opportunities for reducing the related morbidity and mortality is the foundation of such an approach.

We would like to thank Congress for its continued support for this public health research in FY24, providing $12.5 million each to the CDC and NIH for the fifth consecutive fiscal year. These initial investments are a crucial step toward applying a public health approach to increasing gun safety and reducing firearm-related injuries and deaths, and we are excited to see these funds contributing to important research projects that are now underway. The CDC has made 34 awards for two- and three-year projects to improve scientific understanding of firearm- 2 related violence and to rigorously evaluate the effectiveness of prevention strategies.⁴Several of these projects provide insights on how to reduce suicide risk in U.S. Army soldiers and veterans, how to partner with families and adolescents in rural areas to promote firearm safety, how to improve efforts to reduce urban firearm injuries, and the relationship between firearm access and opioid-related harm on firearm suicide risk, among other topics. And this research is already yielding valuable results, including insights into how children and teens experience gun violence in big cities and its impacts on their health, the needs of young people involved with the juvenile justice system who are at particularly high risk of experiencing firearm violence, and crisis hotline data to better understand how mass shootings impact young people.⁵ The NIH is funding research on the determinants of firearm injury, the identification of those at risk, and the evaluation of innovative interventions.^6,7,8

These initial investments are important, but increased funding is still needed to overcome the decades-long lack of federal funding that set back our nation's response to the public health issue of firearm-related morbidity and mortality. The agencies have received many more quality proposals than they are able to fund, and additional funding can generate research into important issues, such as the best ways to prevent unintended firearm injuries and fatalities among women and children; the most effective methods to prevent firearm-related suicides; the measures that can best prevent the next shooting at a school or public place; and numerous other vital public health questions.

Our groups strongly urge Congress to increase the funding level to $35 million for the CDC, $25 million for the NIH, and $1 million for the NIJ for firearm morbidity and mortality prevention research as part of FY 2025 appropriations. Continued and expanded funding could support the creation of additional, large, multi-year studies and accelerate the rebuilding of a research community that shrank in the decades before Congress restored this federal funding. Robust and sustained research on motor vehicle crashes and subsequent legislation has helped save hundreds of thousands of lives through public health interventions, including seat belts and other safety features. The same approach can help reduce firearm-related injuries in our communities, including ensuring that the CDC, NIH, and NIJ are able to adequately fund non-biased, evidence-based research into this public health priority. Exploring additional agencies to fund for this work would also ensure this research can address all necessary areas of inquiry and move us closer to the approximately $100 million necessary annually to fully support this research field.

Our organizations stand ready to work with you to support this critical effort. Thank you for your consideration.

Sincerely,

National Organizations:
AANS/CNS Joint Section on Neurotrauma & Critical Care
AANS/CNS Section on Pediatric Neurological Surgery
Academic Pediatric Association
Access Ready Inc.
Advocate Heath Midwest Region
AFT: Education, Healthcare, Public Services
AIDS Alliance for Women, Infants, Children, Youth & Families
ALS Association
American Academy of Addiction Psychiatry
American Academy of Emergency Medicine
American Academy of Family Physicians
American Academy of Neurology
American Academy of Nursing
American Academy of Pediatrics
American Academy of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation (AAPM&R)
American Anthropological Association
American Art Therapy Association
American Association for Emergency Psychiatry (AAEP)
American Association of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry
American Association of Colleges of Nursing
American Association of Neurological Surgeons
American Clinical Neurophysiology Society (ACNS)
American College of Clinical Pharmacy
American College of Emergency Physicians
American College of Neuropsychopharmacology
American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists
American College of Physicians
American College of Preventive Medicine
American College of Surgeons
American Educational Research Association
American Foundation for Suicide Prevention
American Geriatrics Society
American Medical Association
American Medical Women's Association
American Mental Health Counselors Association
American Nurses Association
American Osteopathic Association
American Pediatric Society
American Pediatric Surgical Association
American Physical Therapy Association
American Professional Society on the Abuse of Children (APSAC)
American Psychiatric Association
American Psychological Association Services
American Public Health Association
American School Counselor Association
American Society for Clinical Pathology
American Society for Surgery of the Hand Professional Organization
American Society of Addiction Medicine (ASAM)
American Society of Hematology
American Society of Pediatric Hematology/Oncology
American Society of Pediatric Nephrology
American Society of Pediatric Neurosurgeons
American Society of Pediatric Otolaryngology
American Sociological Association
American Thoracic Society
American Trauma Society
Association for Prevention Teaching and Research
Association for Psychological Science
Association of Academic Physiatrists
Association of American Medical Colleges
Association of Asian Pacific Community Health Organizations (AAPCHO)
Association of Chairs of Departments of Physiology
Association of Departments of Family Medicine
Association of Maternal & Child Health Programs
Association of Medical School Pediatric Department Chairs
Association of Pathology Chairs
Association of Population Centers
Association of Rehabilitation Nurses
Association of Schools and Programs of Public Health
Association of State and Territorial Health Officials
Begun Center for Violence Prevention Research and Education, Case Western Reserve
University
Big Cities Health Coalition
Camp Fire National
Catholic Health Association of the United States
Center for the Study of Social Policy (CSSP)
Child Injury Prevention Alliance
Child Neurology Foundation
Child Welfare League of America
Children's Advocacy Institute
Children's Health Fund
Children's Hospital Association
Columbia University Scientific Union for the Reduction of Gun Violence
Congress of Neurological Surgeons
Council of Pediatric Subspecialties
Council of State and Territorial Epidemiologists
Council on Social Work Education
Doctors for America
Education Development Center
Family Centered Treatment Foundation
Federation of Associations in Behavioral and Brain Sciences
First Focus Campaign for Children
Futures Without Violence
Ginger Lee Global Health Consulting Group
GLMA: Health Professionals Advancing LGBTQ+ Equality
HealthConnect One
Health Resources in Action
Healthy Teen Network
Institute for Child Success
International Association of Forensic Nurses
Jewish Women International
Kids and Car Safety
Kula Empowered
Latino Commission on AIDS, Inc.
MomsRising
NAPCRG
NASPA - Student Affairs Administrators in Higher Education
National Alliance on Mental Illness
National Asian Pacific American Families Against Substance Abuse (NAPAFASA)
National Association of County and City Health Officials
National Association of Medical Examiners
National Association of Pediatric Nurse Practitioners
National Association of School Psychologists
National Association of Social Workers
National Association of State Emergency Medical Services Officials
National Hispanic Health Foundation
National Hispanic Medical Association
National League for Nursing
National Network of Public Health Institutes
National Nurse-Led Care Consortium
National Organization for Women
National Prevention Science Coalition to Improve Lives
National PTA
National Safety Council
North American Society for Pediatric Gastroenterology, Hepatology and Nutrition
OnCall4Kids
Pacific Institute for Research and Evaluation
Peace Through Action USA
Pediatric & Young Adult Oncology
Pediatric Endocrine Society
Pediatric Policy Council
Policy Center for Maternal Mental Health
Population Association of America
Prevention Institute
Primary Care Development Corporation
Public Health Institute
Research!America
Safe States Alliance
Sandy Hook Promise
Save the Children
Scrubs Addressing the Firearm Epidemic, Inc. (SAFE)
Society for Adolescent Health and Medicine
Society for Developmental and Behavioral Pediatrics (SDBP)
Society for Maternal-Fetal Medicine
Society for Pediatric Anesthesia
Society for Pediatric Pathology
Society for Pediatric Radiology
Society for Pediatric Research
Society for Prevention Research
Society for Public Health Education
Society for Women's Health Research
Society of Critical Care Medicine
Society of General Internal Medicine
Society of Hospital Medicine
Society of Laparoscopic and Robotic Surgeons
Society of Teachers of Family Medicine
Society of University Surgeons
Stop Abuse Campaign
Survivor Justice Action
The American Psychoanalytic Association
The Consortium of Social Science Associations
The Health Alliance for Violence Intervention
The National Alliance to Advance Adolescent Health
The Pediatric Orthopaedic Society of North America
The Redwoods Group Foundation
The Society for Research in Child Development (SRCD)
The Society of Thoracic Surgeons
The Triological Society
Trinity Health
Trust for America's Health
University of Michigan
University of Pittsburgh Medical Center (UPMC)
VALOR
YMCA of the USA
Zero Suicide Institute
ZERO TO THREE

State and Local Organizations:

Alabama
Alabama Chapter- American Academy of Pediatrics
Alabama Chapter- National Association of Pediatric Nurse Practitioners
VOICES for Alabama's Children
YMCA of Greater Birmingham

Alaska
Alaska Chapter, American Academy of Pediatrics

Arizona
Arizona Association of School Psychologists
Arizona Chapter of the American Academy of Pediatrics
Arizona Coalition to End Sexual and Domestic Violence
Arizona Public Health Association
Prevent Child Abuse Arizona

Arkansas
Arkansas Chapter, American Academy of Pediatrics
Arkansas Chapter - National Association of Pediatric Nurse Practitioners

California
A Greater Hope
AAPI Equity Alliance
African American Wellness Center for Children & Families
American Academy of Pediatrics - Orange County Chapter
American Academy of Pediatrics, California Chapter 1
American Academy of Pediatrics, CA Chapter 3
CA Black Health Network
California Alliance of Child and Family Services
California Neurology Society
East Bay Asian Youth Center
John Burton Advocates For Youth
Los Angeles, California Chapter - National Association of Pediatric Nurse Practitioners
Orange County, California Chapter - National Association of Pediatric Nurse Practitioners
Sacramento, California Chapter - National Association of Pediatric Nurse Practitioners
San Diego, California Chapter - National Association of Pediatric Nurse Practitioners
UCLA
University of California System
University of California, Davis

Colorado
American Academy of Pediatrics - Colorado Chapter
Colorado Children's Campaign
Colorado Rocky Mountain Chapter - National Association of Pediatric Nurse Practitioners

Connecticut
Connecticut Chapter of the American Academy of Pediatrics
Connecticut Chapter - National Association of Pediatric Nurse Practitioners
Connecticut College of Emergency Physicians

Delaware
Delaware Academy of Medicine/Delaware Public Health Association
Delaware Association of School Psychologists (DASP)
Delaware Chapter, American Academy of Pediatrics

District of Columbia
American Academy of Pediatrics, DC Chapter
DC Action
The District of Columbia Public Health Association
Washington, DC Chapter - National Association of Pediatric Nurse Practitioners

Florida
FL National Organization for Women
Florida Chapter - National Association of Pediatric Nurse Practitioners
Florida Chapter of American Academy of Pediatrics, Inc.
Florida College of Emergency Physicians
Florida Public Health Association
Greater Orlando National Organization for Women
Lee County Chapter of NOW
Pasco County National Org for Women

Georgia
Georgia Association of School Psychologists
Georgia Chapter-American Academy of Pediatrics
Georgia Chapter - National Association of Pediatric Nurse Practitioners
Georgia NOW
Valley Healthcare System Inc.

Hawaii
Hawai'i Association of School Psychologists
Hawaii ACEP
Hawaii Chapter of the American Academy of Pediatrics
Hawaii Neurological Society
Hawaii Public Health Association

Idaho
Idaho Chapter of the American Academy of Pediatrics

Illinois
Ann & Robert H. Lurie Children's Hospital of Chicago
Brightpoint
Illinois Academy of Family Physicians
Illinois Chapter - National Association of Pediatric Nurse Practitioners
Illinois Chapter, American Academy of Pediatrics
Illinois National Organization for Women
Illinois Public Health Association
Illinois School Psychologists Association (ISPA)
Illinois State Medical Society
Illinois State Neurological Society
Legal Council for Health Justice
Will County NOW

Indiana
Covering Kids & Families of Indiana
Indiana Association of School Nurses
Indiana Chapter of the American Academy of Pediatrics
Indiana Neurological Society
Indiana Public Health Association
Marion County Youth Violence Prevention Coalition
MCCOY (Marion County Commission on Youth, Inc.)

Iowa
Iowa ACEP Chapter
Iowa Chapter American Academy of Pediatrics
Iowa Chapter - National Association of Pediatric Nurse Practitioners

Kansas
Kansas Chapter American Academy of Pediatrics

Kentucky
Brain Injury Association of America - Kentucky Chapter
Kentucky Chapter of the AAP
Prevent Child Abuse Kentucky

Louisiana
Louisiana Public Health Association
The Louisiana Chapter of the American Academy of Pediatrics
VIA LINK/Prevent Child Abuse Louisiana (PCAL)
Violence Prevention Institute at Tulane University

Maine
Maine AAP
Maine Children's Trust
Maine Neurological Society
Maine Providers for Gun Safety
Maine Public Health Association

Maryland
Johns Hopkins University & Medicine
Maryland ACEP Chapter
Maryland Chapter, American Academy of Pediatrics (MDAAP)
Maryland Chapter, National Organization for Women
Maryland Chesapeake Chapter - National Association of Pediatric Nurse Practitioners
Moore Center for the Prevention of Child Sexual Abuse
NAMI Howard County, MD
The Family Tree
The Maryland Psychiatric Society
The Parents' Place of MD
University of Maryland, College Park

Massachusetts
Brain Injury Association of Massachusetts (BIA-MA)
Disability Law Center (MA)
Massachusetts College of Emergency Physicians
Massachusetts School Psychologists Association
The Massachusetts Chapter of the American Academy of Pediatrics
YMCA of Greater Boston

Michigan
Brain Injury Association of Michigan
Michigan Chapter - National Association of Pediatric Nurse Practitioners
Michigan Chapter American Academy of Pediatrics
Michigan College of Emergency Physicians
Michigan Council for Maternal and Child Health
Physicians for the Prevention of Gun Violence
The Arc Michigan

Minnesota
Minnesota Chapter, American Academy of Pediatrics
Minnesota Chapter - National Association of Pediatric Nurse Practitioners
Minnesota Public Health Association

Mississippi
NAMI Vicksburg, MS

Missouri
Missouri Chapter, American Academy of Pediatrics
Missouri Coalition Against Domestic & Sexual Violence
Missouri Network Against Child Abuse
Missouri Public Health Association (MPHA)
NAMI St. Louis
National Organization for Women, Columbia Area
National Organization for Women, Missouri

Montana
Montana Chapter of the American Academy of Pediatrics

Nebraska
Nebraska Chapter AAP
Nebraska Coalition to End Sexual and Domestic Violence
Nebraska Neurological Society
Public Health Association of Nebraska

Nevada
Nevada Chapter, American Academy of Pediatrics
Nevada Public Health Association

New Hampshire
NHAAP

New Jersey
Family Voices NJ
NAMI Essex/Passaic
New Jersey ACEP
New Jersey Association of School Psychologists
New Jersey Chapter, American Academy of Pediatrics
New Jersey Gun Violence Research Center
New Jersey Health Care Quality Institute
New Jersey Local Boards of Health Association
New Jersey Public Health Association
New Jersey Society for Public Health Education (NJSOPHE)
Prevent Child Abuse-New Jersey Chapter, Inc.
SPAN Parent Advocacy Network

New Mexico
NAMI New Mexico
New Mexico Association of School Psychologists
New Mexico Pediatric Society, the New Mexico Chapter of the American Academy of Pediatrics
Santa Fe National Organization for Women

New York
Cohen Children's Medical Center/Northwell
Columbia University Irving Medical Center
E-Chapter - National Association of Pediatric Nurse Practitioners
Gitenstein Institute for Health Law and Policy
Greater New York State Chapter - National Association of Pediatric Nurse Practitioners
Long Island, New York Chapter - National Association of Pediatric Nurse Practitioners
NAMI Buffalo & Western New York
New York State American Academy of Pediatrics
New York State Neurological Society
New York State Public Health Association
Northwell Health Center for Gun Violence Prevention
NYS AAP - Chapter 2
NYS AAP - Chapter 3
Pediatric Emergency Care Special Interest Group - National Association of Pediatric Nurse
Practitioners
Prevent Child Abuse New York
Where Do We Go From Here Inc

North Carolina
Atrium Health-Levine Children's Hospital
Duke Health
NAMI Cabarrus
NC College of Emergency Physicians
NC Pediatric Society
NC Public Health Association
NCSPA
North Carolina Chapter - National Association of Pediatric Nurse Practitioners
Positive Childhood Alliance NC

North Dakota
North Dakota Chapter of the AAP

Ohio
American College of Emergency Physicians, Ohio Chapter
Cleveland Peacemakers Inc
Nationwide Children's Hospital
Ohio Alliance to End Sexual Violence (OAESV)
Ohio Chapter, American Academy of Pediatrics
Ohio School Psychologists Association

Oklahoma
NAMI Oklahoma
Oklahoma Chapter American Academy of Pediatrics

Oregon
Micronesian Islander Community
National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI) Yamhill County
Oregon ACEP
Oregon Coalition Against Domestic and Sexual Violence
Oregon Coalition of Local Health Officials
Oregon Health & Science University-Portland State University Gun Violence as a Public Health
Issue Initiative
Oregon Pediatric Society
Oregon Public Health Association
Oregon School Psychologists Association
Portland State University
University of Oregon

Pennsylvania
Association of School Psychologists of Pennsylvania
Children's Hospital of Philadelphia
PA Chapter, American Academy of Pediatrics
Penn Injury Science Center, University of Pennsylvania
Pennsylvania Public Health Association
Pennsylvania Del Valley Chapter - National Association of Pediatric Nurse Practitioners

Puerto Rico
Puerto Rico ACEP Chapter

Rhode Island
American Academy of Pediatrics, Rhode Island Chapter
Rhode Island Neurological Society
The Rhode Island Public Health Association

South Carolina
NAMI South Carolina
SCAAP
South Carolina Association of School Psychologists

South Dakota
South Dakota Chapter - AAP
South Dakota Public Health Association (SDPHA)

Tennessee
Family Voices of Tennessee
Life Paths Research Center
Tennessee ACEP Chapter
Tennessee Chapter of the American Academy of Pediatrics
Tennessee Public Health Association
Youth Villages

Texas
Houston, Texas Chapter - National Association of Pediatric Nurse Practitioners
South Texas Alamo Chapter - National Association of Pediatric Nurse Practitioners
Texas Neurological Society
Texas Pediatric Society

Utah
American Academy of Pediatrics, Utah Chapter
Prevent Child Abuse Utah
Utah Association of School Psychologists
Utah Chapter - National Association of Pediatric Nurse Practitioners
Utah Public Health Association

Vermont
AAP Vermont Chapter
Vermont ACEP Chapter
Vermont Public Health Association

Virginia
Virginia Chapter, American Academy of Pediatrics
Virginia Commonwealth University

Washington
Children's Alliance
Public Health - Seattle and King County
Seattle Chapter, National Organization for Women
South Sound Chapter National Organization of Women
University of Washington
Washington Chapter of the American Academy of Pediatrics
Washington State Association of School Psychologists (WSASP)
Washington State Neurological Society
Washington State Public Health Association

West Virginia
West Virginia Chapter, AAP
West Virginia College of Emergency Physicians

Wisconsin
Children's Wisconsin
NAMI Northwoods
Supporting Families Together Association
Wisconsin Association of Osteopathic Physicians and Surgeons (WAOPS)
Wisconsin Chapter, American College of Emergency Physicians
Wisconsin Chapter of the American Academy of Pediatrics
Wisconsin Coalition Against Sexual Assault
Wisconsin Neurological Society
Wisconsin Psychiatric Association
Wisconsin Public Health Association

Wyoming
Wyoming Chapter of the American Academy of Pediatrics

¹ Health Management Associates. "Cost Estimate of Federal Funding for Gun Violence Research and Data Infrastructure." https://assets.joycefdn.org/content/uploads/CostEstimateofFederalFundingforGunViolenceResearch.pdf. Report prepared for Arnold Ventures and the Joyce Foundations. Published July 13, 2021.
² Thomas R. Simon, et al. "Notes from the Field: Increases in Firearm Homicide and Suicide Rates - United States, 2020-2021." Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Available at: http://dx.doi.org/10.15585/mmwr.mm7140a4.
³ Johns Hopkins - Bloomberg School of Public Health. "CDC Provisional Data: Gun Suicides Reach All-time High in 2022, Gun Homicides Down Slightly from 2021." July 27, 2023. Available at: https://publichealth.jhu.edu/2023/cdc-provisional-data-gun-suicides-reach-all-time-high-in-2022-gun-homicidesdown-slightly-from-2021.
⁴ Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, National Center for Injury Prevention and Control. "Firearm Violence Prevention: Funded Research." Available at: https://www.cdc.gov/violenceprevention/firearms/funded-research.html..
⁵ Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. "Summary of Initial Findings from CDC-Funded Firearm Injury Prevention Research." Available at: https://www.cdc.gov/violenceprevention/firearms/firearm-research-findings.html.
⁶ National Institutes of Health, Office of Behavioral and Social Sciences Research. "NIH awards grants for firearm injury and mortality prevention research." September 30, 2020. Available at: https://obssr.od.nih.gov/nih-awardsgrants-for-firearm-injury-and-mortality-prevention-research/.
⁷ National Institutes of Health, Office of Behavioral and Social Sciences Research. "NIH awards 10 grants addressing firearm violence prevention." September 17, 2021. Available at: https://obssr.od.nih.gov/news-andevents/news/director-voice/nih-awards-10-grants-addressing-firearm-violence-prevention.
⁸ National Institutes of Health, Office of Behavioral and Social Sciences Research. "NIH Research to Prevent Firearm Injury and Mortality." September 15, 2022. Available at: https://obssr.od.nih.gov/news-andevents/news/nih-research-prevent-firearm-injury-and-mortality.