CHICAGO — The American Medical Association (AMA) and seven additional physician organizations today highlighted an amicus brief (PDF) submitted to the U.S. Supreme Court that argues unregistered firearms commonly referred to as “ghost guns” must be kept out of criminals’ hands.
The AMA-led brief in Garland v. VanDerStok (PDF) urges the court to uphold the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) rule stating that the Gun Control Act applies to unregistered firearm kits that are readily convertible into functional firearms.
The physician organizations stated in the brief, “Congress enacted the Gun Control Act… [with] two goals: to ‘prevent guns from falling into the wrong hands’ and to ‘assist law enforcement authorities in investigating serious crimes.”
According to data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 48,204 mothers, fathers, brothers, sisters, children, babies, and other loved ones, friends, and neighbors died of firearm-related injuries in 2022—the most on record. Earlier this year, the U.S. Surgeon General declared firearm violence a public health crisis.
The brief further notes “the [ATF] rule is designed to keep unregistered firearms commonly referred to as ‘ghost guns’ out of the hands of dangerous criminals requiring commercial manufacturers of covered firearm parts kits, frames, and receivers to obtain federal firearm licenses, mark their products with serial numbers, conduct background checks, and keep transfer records… The Fifth Circuit’s ruling would allow circumvention of the Act’s serialization, recordkeeping, and background check requirements.”
Additional organizations joining the AMA in defense of keeping unregistered firearms out of the hands of dangerous criminals include the Texas Medical Association, the American Academy of Family Physicians, the American Academy of Pediatrics, the American College of Emergency Physicians, the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists, the American College of Preventive Medicine, and the American Geriatrics Society.
The AMA declared firearm-related violence – one of the leading causes of intentional and unintentional injuries and deaths in the United States – a public health crisis in in 2016. The AMA supports commonsense measures to reducing the toll of firearm deaths and injuries in the U.S., and works in the courts to uphold laws that keep firearms from those legally prohibited from having firearms due to criminal history or other factors.
Editor’s Note: For additional AMA perspective on unregistered firearms, please see the recent viewpoint by AMA President, Bruce A. Scott, MD.
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About the American Medical Association
The American Medical Association is the physicians’ powerful ally in patient care. As the only medical association that convenes 190+ state and specialty medical societies and other critical stakeholders, the AMA represents physicians with a unified voice to all key players in health care. The AMA leverages its strength by removing the obstacles that interfere with patient care, leading the charge to prevent chronic disease and confront public health crises and, driving the future of medicine to tackle the biggest challenges in health care.
