There is no disputing that the United States has a problem with gun violence. Firearm homicide rates in the United States are 25 times higher than in other high-income countries, and 90 percent of the yearly firearm deaths of women and children in the developed world occur in the U.S.
In 2010, the firearm homicide rate in the U.S. was 600 times the rate in South Korea, which had the lowest rate among high-income nations.
In addition, of the more than 30,000 people in the United States who die each year from gun-related injury, roughly two-thirds die from suicide. Put simply: If there is a gun in a home, there is a two to 10 times increased risk of someone in that home dying from a completed suicide.
As we begin to look at the problem of gun violence in the United States as one of public safety and public health, closing a loophole that allows the purchase of a firearm at a gun show without a criminal background check is a necessary step. Voting “yes” on Question 3 is strongly supported by the American College of Physicians.
Donald Medd, M.D., FACP
Portland
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