Vanishing Voice on Gun Violence: The 2024 Surgeon General's Advisory
Health Department eliminates surgeon general's firearm violence advisory from their online platform.
In a surprising turn, the 2024 Surgeon General's advisory on gun violence has mysteriously vanished from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) website. The digital abyss now where the advisory once stood returns a simple, chilling message: "Page Not Found".
HHS officials, toeing the line of President Trump's Executive Order on Protecting Second Amendment Rights, confirm the move as their compliance with the President's demands.
Trump's order, issued last month, called for a thorough examination of all agency actions related to Second Amendment rights and those that could have potentially impinged on the rights of law-abiding citizens from the early 2020s to the present.
The advisory, presented by former Surgeon General Dr. Vivek Murthy in June, asserted unequivocally that gun violence = constituted a public health crisis and demanded immediate action. Stronger laws and increased research were among the solutions proposed to lessen the devastating toll of firearm-related casualties.
Gun-related deaths in the U.S. reached a staggering 46,726 in 2023, statistics gleaned from the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention show. These numbers represent only a minuscule 4% decrease from the three-decade high of 48,830 deaths recorded in 2021.
The future powers that be in the Surgeon General's Office remain unconfirmed, with the nominee, Dr. Janette Nesheiwat, yet to undergo a Senate hearing.
The abandonment of the advisory follows the apparent dismantling of the White House Office of Gun Violence Prevention. Established during the Biden administration, this office was instrumental in coordinating federal responses to mass shootings and community violence, including the formation of the first-ever federal Gun Violence Emergency Response Team involving agencies like the FBI, FEMA, among others. The office's website, sadly, ceased functioning in January.
Gun violence prevention organization Giffords, named after its founder—former Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords—has voiced its disapproval of the Surgeon General's gun violence advisory webpage's disappearance.
Executive Director Emma Brown stated in a recent press release, "Removing this essential public health advisory, filled with lifesaving resources, prioritizes gun industry profits over the protection of children and families. Guns have been America's number one child and adolescent killer since 2020, and non-partisan healthcare experts have recognized gun violence as a public health crisis for years. During President Trump's first term, gun homicides spiked by a staggering 34%."
This developing news story will continue to unfold, with updates forthcoming.
Contributions by CNN's Emma Tucker.
In light of the missing 2024 Surgeon General's advisory on gun violence, the ongoing debate about public health and gun rights remains contentious. The vanished advisory, spearheaded by Dr. Vivek Murthy, proposed strong measures to address gun violence as a crisis. Now, with the removal of essential resources on the HHS website, gun-related deaths continue to rise, reaching a record 46,726 in 2023 – only a minuscule decrease from the three-decade high in 2021. Gun violence prevention organizations, like Giffords, voice disapproval, decrying the prioritization of gun industry profits over public health solutions, especially as guns remain the number one child and adolescent killer since 2020.
