Gun Violence Solutions

• March 20, 2025 – Legislation’s Firearm Violence Prevention Component. AMWA signed onto this letter in support of gun violence prevention research funding for Fiscal Year (FY) 2026. This sign-on letter calls on Congress to provide $35 million for the CDC, $25 million for the NIH, and $1 million at the NIJ for critical GVP research, which is the same ask made in previous years. Last year, 434 organizations, including AMWA, signed the FY 2025 letter. Many of our congressional champions and their staff have shared with the AAP the enormous impact that this letter has had in past years. Medical, public health, and research organizations are key validators for the importance of this research funding and signing this letter can help secure the important bipartisan support for this funding.
• October 2024 – AMWA signs on to 12th Annual Sandy Hook Anniversary Letter to the Members of Congress. This letter will be hand-delivered by families and survivors directly impacted by gun violence to ALL Members of Congress on December 10th-12th while the families are in DC for the National Vigil for All Victims of Gun Violence.
• June 3, 2024 – AMWA joins more that 430 national, state, and local medical, public health, and research organizations on a gun violence prevention research funding letter that was sent to Senate and House offices
• March 12, 2024 – AMWA signs on to letter urging Congress to pass H.R.4184 and S.2048, the Equal Access to Justice for Victims of Gun Violence Act to repeal the Protection of Lawful Commerce in Arms Act (PLCAA) to ensure that the survivors of gun violence will be allowed to have their day in court and the gun manufacturers, sellers and interest groups are not shielded from liability when it acts with negligence and disregard for public safety.
• February 28, 2023 – AMWA sends letter to HHS urging a 3-action plan to (1) Direct the CDC to issue an updated National Action Plan for Child Injury Prevention to include firearm related harm (last published by the CDC in 2012), (2) Require equitable data practices consistent with the recommendations of the 2022 White House Equitable Data Working Group, and (3) Promote a child-focused CDC definition of firearm related harm to include exposure to gun violence.
• December 14, 2022 – AMWA signs on to letter delivered to Congress on the 10th anniversary of Sandy Hook
• June 21, 2022 – AMWA joins other healthcare organizations in signing on to a gun violence prevention letter to the US Senate
• June 6, 2022 – AMWA joins Giffords as a partner for its gun violence prevention memorial on the National Mall in Washington, DC
• April 28, 2022 – AMWA signs on to letter along with other organizations in the medical, public health, and research community in support of $50 million in federal gun violence prevention research funding to the CDC and NIH in Fiscal Year (FY) 2023
• February 25, 2022 – AMWA signs on to a follow-up letter to the White House outlining a list of Executive Actions the President could take to reduce gun violence

Gun Violence Literacy for Health Professionals Webinar Series 

• Keeping Kids Safe from Gun Violence: Policies, Practice, Progress with Dr. Lois Lee, Chair-elect of the American Academy of Pediatrics, Council on Injury, Violence, and Poison Prevention & Po Murray, Co-Founder/Co-Chair of Newton Action Alliance
• Gun Violence: A Gripping Narrative with Mr. Greg Jackson, Executive Director, Community Justice Action Fund
• Pediatric Firearm Advocacy: Never Just a Shot in the Dark with Katie Donnelly MD, Pediatric Emergency Medicine, Children’s National
• The Effects of Gun Violence in Schools with Robin Cogan RN, New Jersey Director for the National Association of School Nurses
• Repealing Gun Industry Immunity from Civil Liability with Josh Horwitz JD, Executive Director, Coalition to Stop Gun Violence
• Preventing Firearm Violence and Suicide: What Clinicians Can Do with Amy Barnhorst MD, Associate Clinical Professor, UC Davis

Bulletpoints Project – How to Counsel patients on gun safety

Printable Patient brochure on Firearm Safety — Pamphlet for patients

How to Have a Conversation with Patients about Gun Safety — Pamphlet for providers

Gun Violence Research

Gun violence research in the US has been hindered since 1996, with the Congressional passage of the Dickey Amendment. 

The Dickey Amendment states that “none of the funds made available for injury prevention and control at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) may be used to advocate or promote gun control.”  In response to #ThisIsOurLane and other advocacy, congress allocated $25 million for federal firearm-related research in 2020, and increased the funding to $50 million in 2021. AMWA continues to advocate for increased research funding.

SOURCES:

• Sorenson SB, Schut RA. Intimate partner violence and its relationship to gun violence.Trauma Violence Abuse. 2018;19(4):431-442.
• Stockl H et al. The global prevalence of intimate partner homicide: A systemic review. Lancet. 2013;382(9895):859-865.