Infographics
Gun Violence: The Impact on Society
Published on: January 16, 2024. Updated on: February 15, 2024.
This infographic explores the rapidly increasing health and economic costs of gun violence across the United States.
The number of firearm deaths grew by nearly 43% between 2010 and 2020 - reaching over 45,000 deaths by the end of the decade. Suicide by firearms have also continued to rise alarmingly. For every person who dies by firearm, more than two survive.
Gun violence is a public health problem: American Public Health Association, Gun Violence is a Public Health Crisis, 2021
42,967 total gun deaths: Gun Violence Archive, Gun Violence Archive 2023, January 2024
43% increase from 2010 to 2020: John Gramlich, Pew Research Center, What the data says about gun deaths in the U.S., February 2022
327 people are shot each day: The Brady Campaign to Prevent Gun Violence, Key Statistics, December 2023
Average yearly breakdown: The Brady Campaign to Prevent Gun Violence, Gun Violence in the United States, December 2023
For every one person who dies by firearm, more than two survive: The Educational Fund to Stop Gun Violence, Nonfatal Gun Violence, July 2020
Expensive and long-term mental and physical injuries: Alice Miranda Ollstein and Nicholas Wu, Politico, “Health costs of gun violence exceed $1 billion a year, GAO says”, July 2021
Gun violence has significant health and economic consequences, especially among child and adolescent survivors. Gun violence can place a strain on health care systems, with survivors increasing hospitalizations and spending by 1,449% and 1,713% respectively.
Health outcomes following non-fatal firearm injury: Zirui Song et al., in Health Affairs, Firearm Injuries In Children And Adolescents: Health And Economic Consequences Among Survivors And Family Members, Vol. 42, No. 11, November 2023
Gun violence in the US has steep economic consequences, totaling $557 billion in 2022. Most significant are the quality-of-life costs, which include the value of pain and well-being lost by survivors of firearm injuries, decedents, and their families.
$557 billion - Zirui Song, JAMA, The Business Case for Reducing Firearm Injuries, 2022
Economic cost of gun violence: Everytown Research, The Economic Cost of Gun Violence, July 2022
Price Per Individual and Taxpayers: Everytown Research, How does gun violence impact the communities you care about?, 2023
Medicaid and other public programs: Zirui Song et al., Annals of Internal Medicine, Changes in Health Care Spending, Use, and Clinical Outcomes After Nonfatal Firearm Injuries Among Survivors and Family Members, June 2022
Recent studies and cost per person post-injury:
Source 1: Zirui Song et al., Annals of Internal Medicine, Changes in Health Care Spending, Use, and Clinical Outcomes After Nonfatal Firearm Injuries Among Survivors and Family Members, June 2022
Source 2: Zirui Song et al., Health Affairs, Firearm Injuries In Children And Adolescents: Health And Economic Consequences Among Survivors And Family Members, November 2023
Between 2018 and 2023, there was a yearly average of around 603 mass shooting events. While mass shootings are often the most publicized events, they are not the primary source of gun violence.
As of February 15, 2024, there have been nearly 50 mass shootings this year alone, resulting in 88 deaths and over 170 injuries.
656 mass shootings in 2023: Gun Violence Archive, Gun Violence Archive 2023, January 2024
Gun violence definition: Gun Violence Archive, General Methodology, 2022
Mass shootings January 1 - December 31 (2019 - 2022): Gun Violence Archive, Past Summary Ledgers, December 2023
Historically, mass shootings typically occur in the latter half of the year: Shayanne Gal and Madison Hall, Insider, “The US has had 214 mass shootings so far in 2022. Here's the full list.”, May 2022
Mass shootings account for less than 2% of gun deaths: Gun Violence Archive, Past Summary Ledgers, January 2024
More typical acts of gun violence: German Lopez, The New York Times, “America’s Gun Problem”, May 2022
Prior to 2020, motor vehicle accidents were consistently the leading cause of death for children and adolescents in the US. Since then, gun-related deaths have remained the leading cause of death among this age group.
In response to the number of deaths and injuries caused by motor vehicle accidents, numerous legislative steps have been taken to improve car and motor vehicle safety over time. Until recently, there had not been any widespread federal legislation in response to gun violence since 1994.
Guns are the leading cause of death for American children and adolescents: Jason E Goldstick et al., New England Journal of Medicine, Current Causes of Death in Children and Adolescents in the United States, May 2022
Note: Children and adolescents are defined as persons 1 to 19 years old.
For the first time, guns surpassed motor vehicle accidents as cause of death: Daniel J Flannery and Ruth W Begun, “Guns surpass motor vehicles as top cause of death for U.S. children: What parents should know”, Case Western Reserve University, Jack, Joseph, and Morton Mandel School of Applied Social Sciences
Guns have remained the leading cause of death:
Source 1: Bailey K. Roberts et al., American Academy of Pediatrics, Trends and Disparities in Firearm Deaths Among Children, August 2023
Source 2: The Children’s Defense Fund, The State of America’s Children, 2023 Gun Violence, December 2023
Firearm vs. motor vehicle deaths: Dan Keating, The Washington Post, “Guns killed more young people than cars did for the first time in 2020”, May 2022
Data in the above article is from the Centers for Disease Control and Web-based Injury Statistics Query and Reporting System (WISQARS).
Half of all gun deaths occurred in 10 states: The Children’s Defense Fund, The State of America’s Children, 2023 Gun Violence, December 2023
Breakdown of gun deaths Bailey K. Roberts et al., American Academy of Pediatrics, Trends and Disparities in Firearm Deaths Among Children, August 2023
Overall, incidents of gunfire on school grounds have been on the rise since 2013. Across the US, Texas has the highest number of gunfire occurrences on school grounds in this timeframe, resulting in 65 deaths and 88 injuries.
This year alone, there have been 25 incidents of gunfire on school grounds, responsible for over 10 deaths (as of February 15, 2024).
At least 1,165 cases of gunfire on school grounds: Everytown, Gunfire on School Grounds in the United States, January 2024
School shootings over time: Everytown, Gunfire on School Grounds in the United States, January 2024
Only high-income country in which guns are the leading cause of child and adolescent deaths: Matt McGough, Krutika Amin, Nirmita Panchal, and Cynthia Cox, KFF, Child and Teen Firearm Mortality in the US and Peer Countries, July 2023
Firearm deaths account for 20% of all child deaths: Matt McGough, Krutika Amin, Nirmita Panchal, and Cynthia Cox, KFF, Child and Teen Firearm Mortality in the US and Peer Countries, July 2023
Mental illness is often stigmatized as being the cause of gun violence. However, only a minority of mass shooters have experienced serious mental illness. It is estimated that 96% of the common violence that occurs would continue even if the elevated risk of violence among people with mental illness was eliminated.
Mental Illness is not a predictor of violence towards others: Mental Health Alliance, Gun Deaths, Violence, and Mental Health, 2022
Mental illness is not a significant risk factor for gun violence: The Educational Fund to Stop Gun Violence, Mental Illness and Gun Violence, 2020
Mental illness is blamed as the cause: The Educational Fund to Stop Gun Violence, Mental Illness and Gun Violence, 2020
Only a minority of mass shooters have experienced serious mental illness: Jennifer Skeem and Edward Mulvey, Criminology and Public Policy, “What role does serious mental illness play in mass shootings, and how should we address it?”, December 2019
People with mental illness are more likely to be victims of violence: Katie O’Connor, Psychiatric News, “Mental Illness Too Often Wrongly Associated With Gun Violence”, June 2021
Gun violence may cause mental health issues: The Educational Fund to Stop Gun Violence, Mental Illness and Gun Violence, 2020
Suicide among those with a diagnosis is rare:
Source 1: Deborah M. Stone et al., Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report, Vital Signs: Trends in State Suicide Rates — United States, 1999–2016 and Circumstances Contributing to Suicide — 27 States, 2015, June 2018
Source 2: Joseph C. Franklin et al., American Psychological Association, Psychological Bulletin, Risk Factors for Suicidal Thoughts and Behaviors: A Meta-Analysis of 50 Years of Research, 2017
Increased risk of suicide with a gun in the home: Matthew Miller and David Hemenway, The New England Journal of Medicine, Guns and Suicide in the United States, 2008
Nearly half of all suicides involve a gun: Wojciech Kaczkowski et al., Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report, Notes from the Field: Firearm Suicide Rates, by Race and Ethnicity — United States, 2019–2022, December 2023
United States rates of mental illness vs. gun violence compared to other countries: The Educational Fund to Stop Gun Violence, Mental Illness and Gun Violence, 2020
Comparison to other high-income countries: Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation, On gun violence, the United States is an outlier, May 2022
Deaths per 100,000 population by country:
Source 1: Wisevoter, Gun Deaths by Country, December 2023
Source 2: Katherine Leach-Kemon and Rebecca Sirull, University of Washington, The Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation, On gun violence, the United States is an outlier, October 2023
25 times as often: The Educational Fund to Stop Gun Violence, Mental Illness and Gun Violence, 2020
On June 25, 2022, President Biden signed the bipartisan gun safety bill. This new legislation aims to improve mental health support and school safety, restrict firearm access for domestic violence offenders, enable states to put in place laws that will allow authorities to take weapons from those deemed “dangerous,” and toughen background checks for young gun buyers.
A 2022 US Supreme Court ruling has been interpreted by lower courts in such a way as to call some of these aspects of legislation into question. Clarification on whether these and similar restrictions are Constitutionally permissible is likely to come in June 2024.
Bipartisan Safer Communities Act: Congress.Gov, S.2938 - Bipartisan Safer Communities Act, June 2022
Most significant federal legislation since 1994: Executive Office of the President, Office of Management and Budget, Statement of Administration Policy: S.2938 - Bipartisan Safer Communities Act, June 2022
Expanded background checks, “boyfriend loophole”, red flag laws, and illegal gun purchases: Stephanie Lai and Emily Cochrane, The New York Times, “Here’s what is in the Senate’s gun bill - and what was left out.”, June 2022
Federally licensed gun dealers: Aaron Sanchez-Guerra, The News & Observer, “How the Senate’s bipartisan gun bill would affect firearm buyers and sellers in NC”, June 2022
Mental health and school safety: Kelsey Snell, NPR, “Senators reach final bipartisan agreement on a gun safety bill”, June 2022
2023 Court Rulings
New York State Rifle & Pistol Association Inc. v. Bruen: Oyez, New York State Rifle & Pistol Association Inc. v. Bruen, 597 U.S. 1 (2022)
United States v. Rahimi: SCOTUS Blog, United States v. Rahimi, 61 F. 4th 443 (5th Cir. 2023), cert. granted 143 S.Ct. 2688 (2023)
This infographic was reviewed by:
- Paul Helmke, JD, Professor of Practice at Indiana University's O'Neill School of Public and Environmental Affairs and Founding Director of the Civic Leaders Living-Learning Center
- Zirui Song, MD, PhD, Associate Professor of Health Care Policy and Medicine at Harvard Medical School (HMS) and Massachusetts General Hospital and Director of Research at the HMS Center for Primary Care
To learn more about covering important health care and public health topics, such as gun violence, read the recent work by NIHCM Grantee, Association for Health Care Journalists.
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