Does Gun Violence Get Enough Federal Research Funding?

After the devastating mass shooting at a school in Parkland, Florida, student survivors urged politicians to take action in order to prevent more children from being killed by firearms. Even though many proposals and policies have been raised in recent weeks, their possible impact and effects have rarely been studied scientifically.

A study conducted last year found that the amount of money allocated for federal research into gun violence is extremely low in comparison with other major causes of death in the United States. For example, $431 million in federal research funding was set aside for motor vehicle deaths between 2004 and 2014 with 12.33 deaths per 100,000 people occurring during those 10 years. Federal research funding about HIV came to $19.32 billion during the same period while 3.14 lives were lost to the disease per 100,000 people.

Deaths from firearms are subject to far less scholarship, according to research from David Stark and Nigam Shah. Despite 10.40 deaths occurring per 100,000 people from 2004 to 2014, only $22 million in federal research funding was made available for gun violence research.