Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
Calif. Governor Expands State Task Force To Deal With Extremism, Demands Gender Be A Part Of Gun Violence Conversation
Los Angeles Times: In Wake Of Mass Shootings, California Considers New Ways To Fight Violent Extremism
Gov. Gavin Newsom on Monday proposed expanding a state task force to combat violent extremism following the three mass shootings that left at least 34 people dead in Texas, Ohio and California over the past week. The commission, created after the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks in 2001, would seek ways to reduce the threat of similar violent attacks and increase safety at schools and major public events. (Willon, 8/5)
Politico: Why Are Most Shooters Male? Newsom Says Gender Must Be Part Of National Gun Control Discussion
California Gov. Gavin Newsom said Monday that gender must be part of the debate over how to address gun violence in America."These shootings overwhelmingly — almost exclusively — are males, boys, men. I do think that is missing in the national conversation," Newsom said in an emergency meeting with top school, health and public safety officials in Sacramento to discuss California's response following a spate of deadly mass shootings. "If there was anything more obvious, I don't know what is," Newsom said. "I think that goes deep to the issue of how we raise our boys to be men, goes deeply to values that we tend to hold dear — power, dominance, aggression, over empathy, care and collaboration." (Hart, 8/5)
The Associated Press: California Ammo Check Law Blocked 100 Sales In First Month
California's new ammunition background check law in its first month stopped more than 100 people from buying bullets illegally, officials said late Monday as they struggled to deter more of the mass shootings that have roiled California and other states over the last week. "Countless other prohibited persons were likely deterred from even trying to purchase ammunition that they cannot lawfully possess," Attorney General Xavier Becerra said in a court filing. He disclosed the early results in response to a gun owners' rights group attempt to block the law that took effect July 1. (Thompson, 8/5)
Los Angeles Times: California Ammo Check Law Blocked 100-Plus Sales In First Month
Atty. Gen. Xavier Becerra reported the numbers to a federal judge in arguing against an injunction sought by gun owner rights groups to block the law requiring background checks, which was approved by voters in Proposition 63 and through legislation. “The evidence shows that, in the absence of eligibility checks like the ones challenged here, prohibited persons regularly purchase ammunition from unwitting vendors,” said the written brief filed late Monday in federal court in San Diego. (McGreevy, 8/5)
New Hampshire Public Radio: 'You Can Take Action' - Gun Control Advocates Call On Sununu To Sign Gun-Related Bills
In the wake of this weekend’s mass shootings, gun-control advocates in New Hampshire are calling on Chris Sununu to sign off on three gun-related bills. During a rally today in Concord, supporters said the measures are the bare minimum the governor could do, but opponents say the laws are misguided. (Bookman, 8/5)
The CT Mirror: Connecticut Democrats Rally For Tougher Gun Control Measures
Connecticut Democrats, led by Gov. Ned Lamont, rallied on the Capitol’s north steps Monday for stronger federal gun control measures in the wake of last weekend’s mass shootings in Texas and Ohio in which 31 people were killed and scores more were injured. Democrats took aim at President Donald Trump, accusing the Republican president of disseminating hate speech against immigrants and minorities that fueled the actions of the shooters, and U.S. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell for refusing to call a vote on the universal background check bill that has already cleared the House of Representatives. (Phaneuf and Lyons, 8/5)
Boston Globe: Cardinal O’Malley Calls For Leaders To Act After ‘Unacceptable’ Mass Shootings
Cardinal Seán P. O’Malley, the archbishop of Boston, is calling the mass shootings in El Paso, Texas, and Dayton, Ohio, over the weekend “unacceptable in any society” and called for leaders to keep guns out of the hands “of those who would use them to inflict devastating harm.” O’Malley said in a statement released Monday that the attacks that claimed 31 lives and left dozens of others wounded were “fueled by hate and a disregard for human life.” (McDonald, 8/5)
The Associated Press: New Massacres A Jolt For Clergy Who Coped With Past Attacks
As Americans reel from back-to-back massacres in Texas and Ohio, religious leaders who have experienced violence in their houses of worship are venting their anger at the persisting violence and trying to help their congregants persevere. At the Tree of Life synagogue in Pittsburgh, where a gunman killed 11 worshippers during services last October, emotions ran high Sunday as trustees of one of the synagogue's three congregations held their monthly meeting just hours after the shootings in El Paso and Dayton that claimed more than 30 lives. (Crary, 8/5)
Kansas City Star: How To Stop Gun Violence And Shootings: Leaders Offer Ideas
After a bloody week in Kansas City that left six people dead, a public conversation turned to ideas for stopping the violence, or at least slowing it down. Mayor Quinton Lucas suggested implementing a gun buyback program. First Friday officials have discussed closing their popular outdoor arts events earlier in the evening. (Moore, Nozicka and Rice, 8/6)
The Associated Press: New Jersey Enacts 3 Gun Violence Intervention Laws
New Jersey on Monday enacted three laws designed to help victims of gun violence avoid becoming hurt again by firearms or seeking out retaliation. The new laws add to New Jersey's growing list of at least 10 gun-related laws enacted in the last year and come after weekend firearm attacks in Texas and Ohio left 31 dead. But the new legislation's co-author, Democratic Assembly Majority Leader Louis Greenwald, said the timing of the enactments is purely a "tragic" coincidence. (8/5)
The Associated Press: Schools Increasingly Aim To Assess, Manage Student Threats
Schools around the country have been setting up teams to assess threats posed by students who display signs of violence like the former student who compiled a “hit list” years ago in high school and went on to kill nine people in a weekend shooting in Dayton, Ohio. Despite consensus on the approach’s benefits, school officials say they are limited in what they can do by privacy concerns, a lack of resources and limits on what they can communicate once a student leaves school. (Thompson and Waggoner, 8/6)
WLRN: Where To Find Mental Health, Trauma Support In South Florida After A Mass Shooting
In the aftermath of two mass shootings over the weekend—22 people killed in El Paso, Texas, Saturday and nine more killed in Dayton, Ohio, hours later—images and sounds circulating on social media and TV can trigger symptoms of post-traumatic stress disorder, or PTSD, in survivors of similar experiences. There are still resources available for those in South Florida affected by the shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School who may be having a hard time. (Switalski, 8/5)
CBS 17: Mental Health Professional: Don’t Let Information About Mass Shootings Consume You
The proximity of the mass shooting in Dayton could have you paying a little more attention to the news and wondering if you know anyone who was affected by the crime. According to Ohio State University mental health professional Dr. Kenneth Yeager, you could be subjecting yourself to being traumatized. “Mass shootings have been kind of distant from Ohio up to this point. So they’ve been kind of theoretical,” said Yeager. “When you have one in your back yard they become reality.” (8/5)
NPR: 'Tragedy Averted': Texas Grandma Praised For Stopping Alleged Planned Mass Shooting
As the U.S. reels from a weekend of two mass shootings, federal authorities have released details of what they say could have been another tragedy — which didn't happen because the suspect's grandmother managed to stop it. On Friday, federal prosecutors in Lubbock, Texas, said that they have charged a 19-year-old man with making false statements to a federally licensed firearms dealer and that William Patrick Williams was allegedly plotting a mass shooting. (Kennedy, 8/5)
