Sara Chernikoff
USA Today
Originally posted 20 July 24
New research out of Duke University found that some gun laws can prevent firearm suicides' among children and teens. States with safe storage laws and mandatory waiting periods had lower rates of suicide deaths among children 18 and younger.
These same laws did not decrease the risk of kids being murdered by a firearm, the research found.
Lead researcher Dr. Krista Haines is an assistant professor of surgery and population health sciences at Duke University School of Medicine in North Carolina. Haines told USA TODAY there there was a surge in firearm fatalities across the nation during the COVID-19 pandemic.
"There's not a lot of interventions out there that we found that worked." said Haines "Looking at what legislation is out there that does actually work, we thought would be a good first start."
Here is a summary:
Researchers at Duke University have found that certain gun laws can help prevent firearm suicides among children and teens. A study analyzing data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) between 2009 and 2020 revealed that states with safe storage laws, mandatory waiting periods, and child access prevention laws had lower rates of suicide deaths among children 18 and younger. However, these laws did not decrease the risk of firearm homicides among this age group. The study's lead researcher, Dr. Krista Haines, emphasizes the need for effective interventions to address the surge in firearm fatalities during the COVID-19 pandemic. The research suggests that implementing laws controlling access to guns among children and teens can help prevent suicides, which are a leading cause of death among this age group in the US.
