Suicide; A Task Force is not a Substitute for Meaningful Action Print
Commentary
Written by Wisconsin Assembly, Aaron Collins   
Wednesday, 25 September 2019 15:32

guns-anno-48waitMADISON – Today, the Speaker’s Task on Suicide Prevention released recommendations for legislation related to lowering the incidents of suicide in Wisconsin. Despite overwhelming statistical evidence that firearms are a significant factor in suicides in Wisconsin and nationwide, the task force barely mentioned this correlation in their report and related legislation. This is significant due to the fact that half of all suicides in the U.S. are by firearm.

gordon-hintzAssembly Democratic Leader Gordon Hintz (D-Oshkosh) released the following statement on the task force:

“Only Wisconsin Republicans could ignore the single most data driven policy that can actually reduce suicides. A task force that holds hearings around the state is not a substitute for actually doing something. Legislation that would directly address the issue of access to firearms for those at risk, Extreme Risk Protection Orders, was ignored entirely by Republican task force members. The bottom line is that indefensible adherence to extreme ideology on gun violence is a bigger priority for Republicans than reducing the number of suicides.”