Doctors urge laws to protect children from gun deaths
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WASHINGTON (NEXSTAR) – Doctors with the group OnCall4Kids, a non-partisan coalition of medical advocates championing firearm safety legislation, held a press conference Tuesday to push for further legislative action to prevent the number one cause of death for children in America – gun violence.
Pediatric firearm injuries continue to rise, disproportionately impacting Black and Brown communities.
Not only does Doctor Ashlee Jaffee treat gunshot patients, but on July 4th, 2022, she became a victim herself.
“I’ve been hit. Get down, I screamed with uncertainty,” Dr. Jaffee said.
Dr. Jaffee was one of the dozens shot at the Highland Park, Illinois Fourth of July parade.
Seven people were killed.
“The celebration had turned into a war zone as gunshots blazed overhead. It’s a bullet,” Dr. Jaffee said.
Dozens of doctors did rounds on Capitol Hill to treat a disease they say is the number one killer of children.
“It’s a bullet,” Dr. Elliot Lieberman said.
The group of doctors are calling on lawmakers to pass new gun laws that strengthen background checks and require safe storage of guns.
“The best way to treat a gunshot wound is to prevent it from happening,” Dr. Sofia Chaudhary said.
The call for action comes ahead of the two-year anniversary of the tragic mass shooting that claimed the lives of 19 students and two teachers at Robb Elementary school in Uvalde, Texas.
Illinois Democratic Senator Dick Durbin says his party needs help to address this issue.
He is calling on voters to elect people who want to pass legislation that would make it tougher to get high-powered guns.
“We have a sense of responsibility to change this once and for all,” Durbin said.
While speaking over the weekend to members of the NRA, former President Donald Trump said he wants to roll back the new gun laws that passed after Uvalde.
“And let there be no doubt: the survival of our second amendment is very much on the ballot,” Trump said.
The former president said he would stop any attempt to restrict gun ownership.
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