APA Services joined 434 national, state, and local public health and research organizations in a letter to the House and Senate Appropriations Committee leadership (PDF, 153KB)opens in new window in support of robust, sustained funding for public health research into firearm morbidity and mortality prevention. Specifically, the letter requests $35 million for the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), $25 million for the National Institutes of Health (NIH), and $1 million for the National Institute of Justice (NIJ).
The letter emphasizes the need for a “comprehensive, evidence-based approach to reducing firearm-related suicides, violent crime, and accidental shootings.” The agencies have consistently received more quality proposals than they can fund each year. Robust and sustained funding can help to reduce firearm-related injuries and ensure that CDC, NIH, and NIJ can adequately fund non-biased, evidence-based research.
The groups thanked Congress for its continued support of this public health research and recognized that fiscal year 2024 was the fifth consecutive year of investment. They reiterated sufficient and sustained funding would provide a “crucial step toward applying a public health approach to increasing gun safety and reducing firearm-related injuries and deaths.”
APA Services will continue to advocate for increased funding for dedicated funding for gun violence prevention research at CDC, NIH, and NIJ that can help reduce the occurrence and impact of firearm-related violence in the United States.
For more information, contact Angela L. Sharpe, MG.