Since 1996, CDC Funding for Firearm Injury Prevention – Including Research – Has Fallen by 96 Percent; Firearms Remain the Second Leading Cause of Death for Americans Age 15 to 24
WASHINGTON – Everytown for Gun Safety, the country’s largest gun violence prevention organization, today released the following statement applauding the introduction of new legislation in Congress by Senator Edward J. Markey (D-MA) and Representative Carolyn B. Maloney (D-NY) that would appropriate $10,000,000 per year for five years for the purpose of conducting or supporting research on gun violence prevention by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).
In 1996, Congress passed an NRA-backed budget rider to block funding for the CDC to study gun violence. Since then, CDC funding for firearm injury prevention has fallen 96 percent. Meanwhile, firearm fatalities rank among the top five leading causes of injury deaths for Americans and is the second leading cause of injury death for those age 15-24.
STATEMENT FROM SARAH TOFTE, RESEARCH DIRECTOR FOR EVERYTOWN FOR GUN SAFETY:
“Gun violence kills more than 90 Americans and injures hundreds more each day, and yet it remains one of the most underfunded areas of public health research. The legislation introduced today would appropriate necessary and long overdue funds to the CDC to reclaim their leadership when it comes to gun violence prevention research – a role that has been decimated for more than two decades thanks to a relentless campaign by gun lobby-backed legislators. This bill is an essential step in restoring the government’s leadership role in gun violence prevention.”