A recently published New Mexico State University study shows firearm-related deaths involving America Indians and Alaska Natives spiked in the years leading up to the COVID-19 pandemic.


 
Co-authored by Jagdish Khubchandani, a professor of public health sciences at NMSU, and James H. Price of the University of Toledo, the study found that the firearm death rate among American Indians and Alaska Natives increased almost five times the growth rate of their populations between 2018 and 2020.


 
“This is a major and disproportionate escalation given the increase in the size of the population versus the increase in firearm-related death rates,” Khubchandani said. “We wanted to focus on this population due to the little attention given to this group and to inform prevention and policy.”


 
The study, published in the Journal of Community Health, shows that American Indians and Alaska Natives experienced nearly 500 firearm-related deaths per year from 2018 and 2020. The total number of firearm-related deaths across the three years reviewed in the study was 1,487.
 


An estimated 49% of the deaths were suicides, while 44% were homicides. Moreover, 84% of the deaths involved males, and 53% involved individuals between 20 and 39 years old.


 
“More than 65,000 years of potential life of this population were lost due to these deaths, with suicides responsible for almost half of the years of life lost,” Khubchandani said.


 
The states with the highest firearm deaths among American Indians and Alaska Natives were Oklahoma (228), Arizona (196), Alaska (147), New Mexico (99) and California (99).


 
“Given the national debate on guns, it should be noted that firearms as a cause of suicide have rapidly increased in frequency among adults of all racial and ethnic groups,” Khubchandani said.
 


When adjusted for age and population size of American Indians and Alaska Natives, the highest rates of death were observed in Alaska, Wyoming, Montana and Idaho.


 
“Unfortunately, the majority of the top 10 states with highest firearm death rates for this population do not have laws implemented that have been shown promise in reducing firearm deaths,” Khubchandani said.


 
Research shows nearly 150 Americans die of suicide every day. But Khubchandani said additional research is needed among American Indians and Alaska Natives to identify effective prevention strategies and better understand risk factors such as poverty and prejudice, mental health problems, social and cultural factors, historical determinants, and access to firearms.


 
“Given the results of our study, public health practitioners and policymakers should help develop and implement policies to curtail the rising tide of firearm deaths among this population,” he said.


 
To read the study, visit https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/38127297/ .

 

The full article can be seen at https://newsroom.nmsu.edu/news/nmsu-study--firearm-deaths-increasing-among-american-indians--alaska-natives/s/84affa77-a7b2-4eff-a4e0-adffeaabb351