That approach is made credible by the fact that 32,000 Americans are killed by guns each year, and nearly twice that many are treated in our emergency rooms for non-fatal gunshot injuries. One of the main components of protecting the public health is prevention. As physicians charged with the protection of the health of the public, PSR works to add a primary prevention component to gun violence. If a doctor inoculates a child against the measles, chances are that the doctor will never see that child in his or her office with the measles. By the same token, if we go to the source of America's gun problem, the gun makers, and make them responsible for the dangerous products they manufacture, we can prevent many gun deaths each year.
Gun manufacturers continue to make a product that leads to thousands of deaths each year.
They produce a wide range of these products, engage in questionable marketing and promotional tactics and struggle to ignore the body count. Common Cause has produced a comprehensive report on the manner in which the gun industry is being shielded by Congress and the gun lobby from being held responsible for their actions. Money flows from the gun lobby to the pockets of some of our most influential lawmakers - and money talks. Currently the gun industry is exempt from the federal health and safety regulations applied to virtually every other consumer product on the market, from toy guns to teddy bears. Physicians for Social Responsibility applauds the efforts of Common Cause to bring this issue to the public eye.