Why doctors are struggling to treat the gun violence epidemic

In the first 176 days of 2016, there have already been 196 mass shootings in America. Just two weeks ago, we witnessed the deadliest mass shooting in US history when a gunman killed 49 people in the Pulse nightclub in Orlando, Florida. Two days after the massacre, the American Medical Association released a statement calling gun violence in America a "public health crisis."

Despite this statement, and similar sentiments or calls-to-action from the National Physicians Alliance, Doctors for America, American Public Health Association, and numerous other professional medical organizations, many politicians and citizens hesitate to see gun violence as a public health issue. The 193rd, 194th, 195th, and 196th shootings of 2016 happened this...