The executive vice chair of surgery at Johns Hopkins Hospital says U.S. Surgeon General Dr. Vivek Murthy’s declaration that gun violence should be treated as a public health emergency is “historic.”
Dr. Joseph Sakran is the executive vice chair of surgery at Johns Hopkins Hospital. He’s also the chief medical officer for the Brady Campaign and is the survivor of a shooting when he was a teenager.
Sakran said the surgeon general’s declaration is “historic.” He likens it to the 1964 surgeon general’s report on smoking that changed public opinions on tobacco use.
Sarkan said when it came to changing habits and saving lives, the 1964 report “was critical.” He sees Murthy’s report as something “that is going to make a difference.”
While Joseph Richardson, University of Maryland’s MPower professor of African American studies and medical anthropology, believes the declaration on gun violence will add to the body of research on the topic, “I just think it’s a politically fraught issue, and I’m not sure with just this declaration how much impact that’s going to have.
