Pediatrics group urges removal of guns from homes

April 3, 2000
Web posted at: 12:52 p.m. EDT (1652 GMT)

In this story: Doctors urged to lead the fight Recommendations follow 10-year study RELATED STORIES, SITES

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- The American Academy of Pediatrics said Monday the best way to reduce firearms injuries to children and young adults is to remove guns from private homes and the community at large.

In a revision of its policy statement, which calls for an outright ban on handguns and semi-automatic weapons, the AAP said other measures should be taken to curb the number of gunshot injuries until such a ban is in place.

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Guns under fire

"Because firearm-related injury to children is associated with death and severe morbidity and is a significant public health problem, child health care professionals can and should provide effective leadership in efforts to stem this epidemic," said an AAP statement.

The Chicago-based group representing 55,000 children's doctors urged pediatricians to ask questions about guns as they take their patients' histories and to suggest that parents remove guns from the home. It called on all health care professionals to warn parents about the dangers of guns inside and outside the home.

The AAP study found that in 1997, 85 percent of all homicides and 63 percent of all suicides for teenagers ages 15 to 19 were committed with a gun.

In the same year, there were 32,436 firearm-related deaths. At least 4,223 of those victims were under the age of 20.

Data showed the United States has the highest rates of firearms-related deaths among industrialized countries. The rate of gunshot deaths for children younger than 15 is 12 times higher than the rate in 25 other industrialized countries combined.

The study also found that in 1994, the average medical cost per gunshot injury was $17,000. The 134,445 injuries that year produced $2.3 billion in lifetime medical costs, half of which were paid for by the U.S. taxpayer.

The AAP recommended that guns be subject to safety and design regulations, as well as tracing.

It also called on the television and motion picture industries to reduce the romanticization of guns in the media, and asks the same of toy, video game, and software manufacturers.

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American Academy of Pediatrics
Handgun Control and Center to Prevent Handgun Violence
GunCite: Gun Control and Second Amendment Issues
American Shooting Sports Council
U.S. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms
National Rifle Association

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