In an opinion piece in the Baltimore Sun (3/17), Steven S. Sharfstein, MD, president and CEO of Sheppard Pratt Health System in Baltimore, MD and a past president of the American Psychiatric Association, wrote, “In the intense debate on gun violence and mental illness, with a focus on the extremely rare event of mass murders such as in Newtown, Conn., or Aurora, Colo., what is lost in the conversation and debate is the serious suicide epidemic we experience in the United States every year due to gun violence.” Dr. Sharfstein pointed out, “Of 30,000 gun deaths in the US every year, nearly 20,000 are suicides.” Dr. Sharfstein concluded, “Barriers to purchasing a gun for those with a history of treatment for mental illness will likely have a positive impact on the suicide rate, but not much effect on the homicide rate.”
Related Links:
— “Mental illness and guns: the issue is suicide, “Steven S. Sharfstein, The Baltimore Sun, March 17, 2013.