Dear Chairwomen Lowey and DeLauro and Ranking Members Granger and Cole:
As you consider appropriations for Fiscal Year (FY) 2020, the undersigned 166 national, state,
and local medical, public health, and research organizations write to ask you to provide $50
million in funding for the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) to conduct
public health research into firearm morbidity and mortality prevention.
In 2017, there were over 39,000 U.S. firearm-related fatalities.i Federally funded public health
research has a proven track record of reducing public health-related deaths, whether from motor
vehicle crashes, smoking, or Sudden Infant Death Syndrome. This same approach should be
applied to increasing gun safety and reducing firearm-related injuries and deaths, and CDC
research will be as critical to that effort as it was to these previous public health achievements.
The foundation of a public health approach is rigorous research that can accurately quantify and
describe the facets of an issue and identify opportunities for reducing its related morbidity and
mortality.
We were heartened by U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary Alex
Azar’s February 2018 comments clarifying that the Dickey Amendment does not prohibit CDC
from funding gun violence prevention research. As you know, the Dickey Amendment was a
1996 amendment to a federal spending bill indicating that the CDC could not advocate for or
promote gun control. This language created a chilling effect on public health research on firearm
morbidity and mortality prevention at the federal level. Despite the amendment sponsor’s later
statement that he never intended to undermine public health research, the practical effect has
been just that: CDC has not funded needed research into important issues including the best ways
to prevent unintended firearm injuries and fatalities among women and children; the most
effective methods to prevent firearm-related suicides; the measures that can best prevent the next
shooting at a school or public place; and numerous other vital public health questions.
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