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Lois A. Fingerhut, MA; Joel C. Kleinman, PhD
National Center for Health Statistics Hyattsville, Md

JAMA. 1990;264(17):2210-2211.

	Since this article does not have an abstract, we have provided the first 150 words of the full text PDF and any section headings.

In Reply.—

In our article, we state that the "high proportion of firearm-related homicides in the United States suggests that the availability of handguns is a factor that deserves special attention." In the search for explanations of, and interventions to reduce, the high US homicide rate, we would be remiss if we did not consider the effect of firearm availability on the homicide rate. Three fourths of the homicides among males 15 to 24 years of age resulted from the use of firearms, compared with only 23% in the 14 other countries for which data were available. Furthermore, handguns accounted for three fourths of the firearm-related homicides in the United States, and although military weapons are widely available in Switzerland and Israel, each of these countries has strict laws regulating the licensing of handguns.

The role of factors other than handgun availability is important to consider. As of 1989, however, . . . [Full Text PDF of this Article]

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