Editor’s note: this commentary is by Paul Manganiello, MD, emeritus professor of the Geisel School of Medicine at Dartmouth and the medical director of Good Neighbor Health Clinic in White River Junction. He is a member of GunsenseVT.
Gun violence in the state of Vermont continues to be a public health issue. The Vermont Medical Society has publicly supported Vermont Sen. Philip Baruth’s proposed bill, S.6 (now also H.151), to strengthen universal background checks for the purchase of all firearms. This bill would not infringe upon anyone’s constitutional right, but would help to align existing state statutes with federal statutes. It would require background checks not only on the purchase of firearms through federally licensed dealers, but also on firearm purchases through other venues such as gun shows, online sales and private sales.
The vetting process would be the same for all. The Federal Background Check Program has kept guns out of the hands of millions of high-risk individuals since its inception, and the proposed legislation would address a major loophole that currently allows for guns to be diverted for use in illicit activity.
Statistics support our efforts. States with comprehensive gun sale regulations see a reduction in firearm trafficking. Interstate gun trafficking was 48 percent lower where the state regulated private handgun sales. Universal background checks, including sales at gun shows, online or between private individuals, are recommended by eight health professional organizations and the American Bar Association.
We frequently hear that Vermont is a safe state that does not suffer from gun violence. Yet on a per capita basis, Vermont ranks eighth highest in the nation for homicides against women. And these statistics do not take into account the further role of firearms in abuse and intimidation or the suffering of countless friends, families and community members whose loved ones have been affected by gun violence, including suicide.
States with comprehensive gun sale regulations see a reduction in firearm trafficking. Interstate gun trafficking was 48 percent lower where the state regulated private handgun sales.
Vermont is no longer immune to crimes associated with urban areas. The rise in addictive prescription pain medications has resulted in illicit use of heroin, opioids and crack cocaine. Will universal background checks eliminate gun violence? Probably not. But it will reduce it. It is callous to say to individuals who have lost a loved one to gun violence that spending $45 on a background check is too onerous. Preventing one death or injury would be worth the price.
The article by Paul Heintz, a Seven Days journalist from Burlington, shows how simple it is to obtain a firearm without any accountability:
Members of GunSenseVT have also been collaborating with the Vermont Network Against Domestic and Sexual Violence to move along the H.422 legislation, which would allow police to remove firearms from the scene of domestic violence incidents without a court order.
Please contact your state representatives and senators to support universal background checks on all gun sales, as well as supporting H.422.
