Dr. Garen J. Wintemute's slides from the Center for Health Journalism webinar, "Outgunned: America’s Public Health Crisis," 3.13.18 More info: https://www.centerforhealthjournalism.org/content/outgunned-americas-public-health-crisis

1. Firearm Violence in the United States
Garen Wintemute, MD, MPH
Violence Prevention Research Program
University of California, Davis
March 13, 2018
VPRP

2. “If it’s not a health problem,
then why are all those people
dying from it?”
- David Satcher, MD
On violence:
VPRP
Applebome. NYT, Sep 26, 1993
, 1993

3. All Those People
• 321,557 deaths from firearm violence (suicide or homicide) in the
US from 2007-2016
• 333,890 firearm deaths altogether
• In 2016:
• 37,353 deaths from firearm violence
• 74.4% of homicides & 51.0% of suicides involved firearms
• $229 B in aggregate costs for firearm death and injury in 2012,
approximately 1.4% of GDP
VPRP
CDC WISQARS; Follman et al.
2015

4. 0
5
10
15
20
25
30
1950
1955
1960
1965
1970
1975
1980
1985
1990
1995
2000
2005
2010
2015
Deaths/100,000Population
Year
Motor Vehicles
Firearms
Death Rates from Motor Vehicle Traffic Events and
Firearm Violence, 1950-2016
VPRP

5. 0
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
1981
1983
1985
1987
1989
1991
1993
1995
1997
1999
2001
2003
2005
2007
2009
2011
2013
2015
Deaths/100,000Population
Year
Suicide
Homicide
Death Rates from Firearm Suicide and Homicide,
1981-2016
VPRP

6. 0
20
40
60
80
100
120
0-4
5-9
10-14
15-19
20-24
25-29
30-34
35-39
40-44
45-49
50-54
55-59
60-64
65-69
70-74
75-79
80-84
≥85
Deaths/100,000Population
Age
Black
Hispanic
White
Death Rates from Firearm Homicide
Males, 2016
VPRP

7. 0
5
10
15
20
25
30
35
40
45
50
0-4
5-9
10-14
15-19
20-24
25-29
30-34
35-39
40-44
45-49
50-54
55-59
60-64
65-69
70-74
75-79
80-84
≥85
Deaths/100,000Population
Age
White
Black
Hispanic
Death Rates from Firearm Suicide
Males, 2016
VPRP

8. VPRP
Interventions
• Background checks for firearm purchases
• Steps to improve effectiveness
• Expanded denial criteria
• Misdemeanor violence
• Alcohol abuse
• Gun violence restraining orders
• Recovery of firearms from prohibited persons