"The Rise of Firearm Suicide among Young Americans" September 10th, 2020

https://everytownresearch.org/report/the-rise-of-firearm-suicide-among-young-americans/

Summary:

"Firearm suicide is having a devastating impact on American youth. Over the past decade, the firearm suicide rate among young people has increased faster than in any other age group.

Today, it is at an all-time high. As students begin an unpredictable school year in the middle of the COVID-19 pandemic, there is concern that the anxiety and loneliness already felt by many young people will continue to increase.

This comes at the same time as the US has seen an unprecedented surge in gun sales, raising concern about the already growing rates of firearm suicide as many youth continue to stay home.

But suicide, including firearm suicide, can be prevented. We know that removing access to firearms, a particularly lethal means, is the easiest and quickest intervention. We can potentially save lives by implementing policies that limit easy and immediate access to firearms, increasing awareness of risk factors, improving access to mental health care, and supporting America’s youth."

Please read the full article since it contains paragraphs like this one:

“This all comes at a time when the US has seen a surge in gun sales. Driven by fear and anxiety during the COVID-19 pandemic, people bought an estimated 11.8 million guns in the six-month period from March through August 2020.¹¹ 

Even before this surge, estimates indicate that a staggering 4.6 million American children lived in households with at least one unlocked and loaded firearm.¹² 

This ready access to guns is concerning given that nearly three in four firearm suicides by young people take place in or around a home,¹³ and over 80 percent of firearm suicides by children (age 18 or younger) involve a gun belonging to a family member.¹⁴“